Potential Role of the mTORC1-PGC1α-PPARα Axis under Type-II Diabetes and Hypertension in the Human Heart.

Type-2 diabetes (T2DM) and arterial hypertension (HTN) are major risk factors for heart failure. Importantly, these pathologies could induce synergetic alterations in the heart, and the discovery of key common molecular signaling may suggest new targets for therapy. Intraoperative cardiac biopsies were obtained from patients with coronary heart disease and preserved systolic function, with or without HTN and/or T2DM, who underwent coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Control (n = 5), HTN (n = 7), and HTN + T2DM (n = 7) samples were analysed by proteomics and bioinformatics. Additionally, cultured rat cardiomyocytes were used for the analysis (protein level and activation, mRNA expression, and bioenergetic performance) of key molecular mediators under stimulation of main components of HTN and T2DM (high glucose and/or fatty acids and angiotensin-II). As results, in cardiac biopsies, we found significant alterations of 677 proteins and after filtering for non-cardiac factors, 529 and 41 were changed in HTN-T2DM and in HTN subjects, respectively, against the control. Interestingly, 81% of proteins in HTN-T2DM were distinct from HTN, while 95% from HTN were common with HTN-T2DM. In addition, 78 factors were differentially expressed in HTN-T2DM against HTN, predominantly downregulated proteins of mitochondrial respiration and lipid oxidation. Bioinformatic analyses suggested the implication of mTOR signaling and reduction of AMPK and PPARα activation, and regulation of PGC1α, fatty acid oxidation, and oxidative phosphorylation. In cultured cardiomyocytes, an excess of the palmitate activated mTORC1 complex and subsequent attenuation of PGC1α-PPARα transcription of ß-oxidation and mitochondrial electron chain factors affect mitochondrial/glycolytic ATP synthesis. Silencing of PGC1α further reduced total ATP and both mitochondrial and glycolytic ATP. Thus, the coexistence of HTN and T2DM induced higher alterations in cardiac proteins than HTN. HTN-T2DM subjects exhibited a marked downregulation of mitochondrial respiration and lipid metabolism and the mTORC1-PGC1α-PPARα axis might account as a target for therapeutical strategies.

Greater Male Variability in Cooperation: Meta-Analytic Evidence for an Evolutionary Perspective.

Do men and women differ systematically in their cooperation behaviors? Researchers have long grappled with this question, and studies have returned equivocal results. We developed an evolutionary perspective according to which men are characterized by greater intrasex variability in cooperation as a result of sex-differentiated psychological adaptations. We tested our hypothesis in two meta-analyses. The first involved the raw data of 40 samples from 23 social-dilemma studies with 8,123 participants. Findings provided strong support for our perspective. Whereas we found that the two sexes do not differ in average cooperation levels, men are much more likely to behave either selfishly or altruistically, whereas women are more likely to be moderately cooperative. We confirmed our findings in a second meta-analytic study of 28 samples from 23 studies of organizational citizenship behavior with 13,985 participants. Our results highlight the importance of taking intrasex variability into consideration when studying sex differences in cooperation and suggest important future research directions.

What should I wear to work? An integrative review of the impact of clothing in the workplace.

Perceptions of clothing are complex, varying across individuals, situations, cultures, and time. Although there is very little research on the topic in our field, evidence from a wide variety of other disciplines points to the importance of clothing in the workplace. In this article, we review this evidence and identify three universal and distinctive clothing characteristics at work: formality, provocativeness, and fashionability. We also identify two other categories: uniforms and religiosity of clothing, which are tied to particular social groups. Drawing on attribution theory and the stereotype content model, we provide a cohesive conceptual framework in which clothing characteristics influence observers' perceptions of wearer's warmth and competence through observers' dispositional attribution processes. These perceptions, in turn, influence facilitation behaviors, such as providing support to wearers, and harm behaviors, such as negatively biased performance appraisal. We conclude by offering suggestions for future research and implications for employees and employers with regard to managing clothing choices and avoiding potential biases. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Untying the climate strength knot: A meta-analytic examination of restricted variance effects in climate strength relations.

Climate strength is often included in organizational climate models, however, its role in such models remains unclear. We propose that the inconsistent findings regarding the effects of climate strength are due in part to its complicated relationship with climate level. Specifically, we propose that the relationship between level and strength is heteroscedastic and nonlinear due to restricted variance (RV) and potential leniency bias in climate ratings. We examine how this relationship between level and strength affects relations between climate strength and work-related outcomes, as well as the implications that this has for bilinear interactions between level and strength. In this meta-analysis, we analyzed 81 independent samples from 77 articles and find support for a heteroscedastic, curvilinear relationship between climate level and climate strength, consistent with the notion that variance compression and leniency bias are present in climate ratings. With regard to the three proposed roles of climate strength in organizational models, we find some support for an additive effect of strength on outcomes, but only at high levels of climate level, and little support for strength as a bilinear moderator of level-outcome relations or for strength as a nonlinear predictor of outcomes. We do find, however, some support for nonlinear interaction effects between level and strength. We discuss implications of our findings for the role of climate strength in future research and for multilevel theory in general. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Detecting gender as a moderator in meta-analysis: The problem of restricted between-study variance.

Meta-analyses in the psychological sciences typically examine moderators that may explain heterogeneity in effect sizes. One of the most commonly examined moderators is gender. Overall, tests of gender as a moderator are rarely significant, which may be because effects rarely differ substantially between men and women. While this may be true in some cases, we also suggest that the lack of significant findings may be attributable to the way in which gender is examined as a meta-analytic moderator, such that detecting moderating effects is very unlikely even when such effects are substantial in magnitude. More specifically, we suggest that lack of between-primary study variance in gender composition makes it exceedingly difficult to detect moderation. That is, because primary studies tend to have similar male-to-female ratios, there is very little variance in gender composition between primaries, making it nearly impossible to detect between-study differences in the relationship of interest as a function of gender. In the present article, we report results from two studies: (a) a meta-meta-analysis in which we demonstrate the magnitude of this problem by computing the between-study variance in gender composition across 286 meta-analytic moderation tests from 50 meta-analyses, and (b) a Monte Carlo simulation study in which we show that this lack of variance results in near-zero moderator effects even when male-female differences in correlations are quite large. Our simulations are also used to show the value of single-gender studies for detecting moderating effects. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Situation strength as a basis for interactions in psychological models.

One of the most important methods that psychological scientists use to understand behavior and cognition is theorizing. Increasingly, theorizing is used to support not only additive hypotheses, but also multiplicative ones. And yet, authors often struggle to provide adequate theoretical justifications for multiplicative hypotheses. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, W. Mischel averred that, in "strong" situations, behavior is relatively uniform regardless of one's personality characteristics. In "weak" situations, that is, those that lack clear behavioral expectations, behavior is not constrained by the situation and is free to covary with personality. This is the situational strength interaction, and although this reasoning has been applied to personality-behavior models, we show that it can be used to justify many interaction models in psychology more generally. In some cases, such reasoning may serve to bolster the more traditional interaction arguments. In other cases, it shows that the traditional interaction arguments must be incorrect. In this tutorial, we describe a generalized situation strength phenomenon, called the restricted variance interaction, that can be used to pinpoint the nature, direction, and even the magnitude of many interaction hypotheses in the psychological sciences. We illustrate the value and application of restricted variance reasoning using examples from the workplace mistreatment literature and then extrapolate to several other areas of psychology. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Where you came from and where you are going: The role of performance trajectory in promotion decisions.

Despite the clear theoretical link between promotions and job performance, the few studies that have tested this relationship have instead found that the role of job performance level in determining promotions is much less than might be expected. In 4 studies, we propose and test a different way of thinking about the performance-promotion relationship. Prospect theory, spiraling theory, and sponsored and contest mobility were used to support the notion that change in performance is at least as important to the prediction of promotion decisions as is absolute level of performance. In Study 1, performance and promotion data were collected for 563 white-collar employees at each of 4 time points spread over 6 years. As hypothesized, change in job performance significantly predicted change in workers' hierarchical level (i.e., promotion) beyond previous performance level. In Study 2, we found that upward trends are associated with ratings of future performance expectation and promotability through their effects on attributions of conscientiousness, proactive personality, and job dedication. In Study 3, we replicated the findings of Study 2 and found no evidence of a performance trend by performance level interaction. In Study 4, we showed that those with upward trends are preferred even to those with performance that is consistent and strong. Taken together, our results suggest that the reason for the modest performance-promotion relationships found in previous research may be that performance trends are seen by decision makers as containing at least as much promotion-relevant information as do performance averages or recent performance levels. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

From alpha to omega and beyond! A look at the past, present, and (possible) future of psychometric soundness in the Journal of Applied Psychology.

The psychometric soundness of measures has been a central concern of articles published in the Journal of Applied Psychology (JAP) since the inception of the journal. At the same time, it isn't clear that investigators and reviewers prioritize psychometric soundness to a degree that would allow one to have sufficient confidence in conclusions regarding constructs. The purposes of the present article are to (a) examine current scale development and evaluation practices in JAP; (b) compare these practices to recommended practices, previous practices, and practices in other journals; and (c) use these comparisons to make recommendations for reviewers, editors, and investigators regarding the creation and evaluation of measures including Excel-based calculators for various indices. Finally, given that model complexity appears to have increased the need for short scales, we offer a user-friendly R Shiny app (https://orgscience.uncc.edu/about-us/resources) that identifies the subset of items that maximize a variety of psychometric criteria rather than merely maximizing alpha. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Situational strength interactions: Are variance patterns consistent with the theory?

Mischel's (1973, 1977) theory of situational strength has been used widely within the organizational sciences to help explain why contextual factors moderate predictor-criterion relationships. Situational strength interactions represent a particular type known as a restricted variance (RV) interaction (Cortina, Köhler, & Nielsen, 2015). The theory proposes that the strength of a given situation constrains or compresses the variance of the dependent variable, weakening its prediction from other variables. Other theories and models, such as self-determination theory and the job characteristics model, also make implicit references to variance compression based on the level of autonomy in a given situation and to the interactions that this compression creates. It is unclear, however, whether differences in strength (or degree of constraint) actually yield variance differences that are consistent with the theoretical framework. In this meta-analysis, we reviewed 132 articles that imply RV effects, 100 of which allowed for variance comparisons. We found that only a handful of authors explicitly connect their theoretical arguments and interaction hypotheses to changes in variance in the Introduction section of their articles. Moreover, our findings also reveal that, for the most part, variance differences between weak and strong situations are minimal. Where differences exist, they are often in the opposite of the expected direction (i.e., larger variance in "strong" situations). We discuss our findings and their theoretical and practical implications. We also provide recommendations for designing studies and testing for such interactions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Knowledge and skills that facilitate the personal support dimension of citizenship.

Efforts to identify the individual attributes that predict organizational citizenship have focused largely on dispositional factors. This focus reflects an unstated assumption that anyone can engage in successful citizenship, but only some choose to do so. The authors contend that, although this may be true of some dimensions of citizenship, it is not true of others. Based on a review of research from industrial and organizational psychology, management, education, clinical psychology, conflict resolution, and other literatures, the authors offer a set of 15 propositions linking knowledge and skill variables to the 4 personal support dimensions of citizenship performance.

Conscientiousness and reactions to psychological contract breach: a longitudinal field study.

The authors examined the role of employee conscientiousness as a moderator of the relationships between psychological contract breach and employee behavioral and attitudinal reactions to the breach. They collected data from 106 newly hired employees within the 1st month of employment (Time 1), 3 months later (Time 2), and 8 months after Time 1 (Time 3) to observe the progression through contract development, breach, and reaction. Results suggest that conscientiousness is a significant moderator for 4 of the 5 contract breach-employee reaction relationships examined (turnover intentions, organizational loyalty, job satisfaction, and 1 of 2 facets of job performance). Specifically, employees who were lower in conscientiousness had more negative reactions to perceived breach with respect to turnover intentions, organizational loyalty, and job satisfaction. In contrast, employees who were higher in conscientiousness reduced their job performance to a greater degree in response to contract breach. Future research directions are discussed.

Twilight of dawn or of evening? A century of research methods in the Journal of Applied Psychology.

We offer a critical review and synthesis of research methods in the first century of the Journal of Applied Psychology. We divide the chronology into 6 periods. The first emphasizes the first few issues of the journal, which, in many ways, set us on a methodological course that we sail to this day, and then takes us through the mid-1920s. The second is the period through World War II, in which we see the roots of modern methodological concepts and techniques, including a transition from a discovery orientation to a hypotheticodeductive model orientation. The third takes us through roughly 1970, a period in which many of our modern-day practices were formed, such as reliance on null hypothesis significance testing. The fourth, from 1970 through 1989, sees an emphasis on the development of measures of critical constructs. The fifth takes us into the present, which is marked by greater plurality regarding data-analytic approaches. Finally, we offer a glimpse of possible and, from our perspective, desirable futures regarding research methods. Specifically, we highlight the need to conduct replications; study the exceptional and not just the average; improve the quality of the review process, particularly regarding methodological issues; emphasize design and measurement issues; and build and test more specific theories. (PsycINFO Database Record

A meta-analytic investigation of conscientiousness in the prediction of job performance: examining the intercorrelations and the incremental validity of narrow traits.

Researchers of broad and narrow traits have debated whether narrow traits are important to consider in the prediction of job performance. Because personality-performance relationship meta-analyses have focused almost exclusively on the Big Five, the predictive power of narrow traits has not been adequately examined. In this study, the authors address this question by meta-analytically examining the degree to which the narrow traits of conscientiousness predict above and beyond global conscientiousness. Results suggest that narrow traits do incrementally predict performance above and beyond global conscientiousness, yet the degree to which they contribute depends on the particular performance criterion and occupation in question. Overall, the results of this study suggest that there are benefits to considering the narrow traits of conscientiousness in the prediction of performance.

Analyzing matrices of meta-analytic correlations: current practices and recommendations.

Researchers have become increasingly interested in conducting analyses on meta-analytic correlation matrices. Methodologists have provided guidance and recommended practices for the application of this technique. The purpose of this article is to review current practices regarding analyzing meta-analytic correlation matrices, to identify the gaps between current and best practices, and to offer a comprehensive set of recommendations regarding the planning, collection, analysis, and interpretation of studies that utilize meta-analytic correlation matrices. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A comment on sampling error in the standardized mean difference with unequal sample sizes: avoiding potential errors in meta-analytic and primary research.

The authors discuss potential confusion in conducting primary studies and meta-analyses on the basis of differences between groups. First, the authors show that a formula for the sampling error of the standardized mean difference (d) that is based on equal group sample sizes can produce substantially biased results if applied with markedly unequal group sizes. Second, the authors show that the same concerns are present when primary analyses or meta-analyses are conducted with point-biserial correlations, as the point-biserial correlation (r) is a transformation of d. Third, the authors examine the practice of correcting a point-biserial r for unequal sample sizes and note that such correction would also increase the sampling error of the corrected r. Correcting rs for unequal sample sizes, but using the standard formula for sampling error in uncorrected r, can result in bias. The authors offer a set of recommendations for conducting meta-analyses of group differences.

Sleepiness at work: a review and framework of how the physiology of sleepiness impacts the workplace.

Sleepiness, the biological drive to sleep, is an important construct for the organizational sciences. This physiological phenomenon has received very little attention in the organizational science literature in spite of the fact that it influences a wide variety of workplace behaviors. In this article, we develop a framework through which sleepiness can be fruitfully studied. We describe (a) what sleepiness is and how it can be differentiated conceptually from related concepts such as fatigue, (b) the physiological basis of sleepiness, (c) cognitive and affective mechanisms that transmit the effects of sleepiness, and (d) the behavioral manifestations of sleepiness in the workplace. We also describe (e) job demand characteristics that are antecedents of sleepiness and (f) individual differences that moderate the aforementioned relationships. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved).

Induction treatment with monoclonal antibodies for heart transplantation.

Individualization of induction therapy for heart transplantation (HT) is needed, given that only patients at significant risk for fatal rejection seem to present a favorable risk-benefit ratio. The question whether monoclonal interleukin 2 antagonists or antilymphocyte antibodies should be recommended remains unanswered. As most studies suggest that they have similar efficacy in preventing acute rejection, other variables related to safety or management costs should be taken into account. The cytokine release syndrome, associated with the use of OKT3, complicates management of HT patient. The experience in our center with 2 consecutive cohorts, treated with basiliximab (BAS) and OKT3, respectively, suggests that the use of BAS is associated, in addition to similar immunosuppressive efficacy and better safety profile than OKT3, with simpler patient management during the initial hospital stay, which could be associated with a reduction in posttransplant costs. Because few centers continue to use OKT3 as induction therapy in HT, more studies comparing cost-effectiveness of BAS vs polyclonal antilymphocyte antibodies (ATG) are needed.

Predictors of mortality and reoperation in acute type-a aortic dissection surgery: 18 years of experience.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: To describe our experience with acute type-A aortic dissection surgery, including an analysis of the effect of cerebral protection on outcome. METHODS: Between March 1990 and October 2007, 98 consecutive patients underwent surgery for acute type-A aortic dissection. Of these, 85 had an ascending aorta replacement, while the entire arch was replaced in 13. The aortic valve was replaced in 34 patients but preserved in the rest. An intimal tear was observed in 83 patients. RESULTS: The in-hospital mortality rate was 15%. Risk factors for in-hospital mortality were age > or = 70 years and preoperative cardiogenic shock (P< .05). Antegrade cerebral perfusion was used in the last 16 consecutive patients, whose in-hospital mortality rate was 6%. The proportions of patients who survived and who did not require reoperation at 1, 5 and 10 years of follow-up were 98.6%+/-1.3%, 86.2%+/-4.6% and 68.2%+/-8.9%, and 97.2%+/-1.9%, 82.5%+/-4.8% and 55.9%+/-7.9% for the two outcomes, respectively. The risk factors for reoperation were found to be severe preoperative aortic regurgitation and preservation of the aortic valve (P< .05). The only risk factor for late mortality was not using antegrade cerebral perfusion (P< .05). CONCLUSIONS: Despite its seriousness, surgery for acute aortic dissection produces good early and long-term results. Antegrade cerebral perfusion improves the prognosis of these patients and should be the technique of choice for cerebral protection.

[Aortic valve preservation in Marfan syndrome. Initial experience]. / Experiencia inicial con la preservación de la válvula aórtica en el síndrome de Marfan.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: Preservation of the aortic valve using the technique described by David has been shown to be as effective as the Bentall-De Bono procedure. It avoids both the need for long-term anticoagulation and the complications associated with mechanical prostheses. We report our initial experience using this technique in patients with Marfan syndrome. METHODS: Between April 2004 and April 2006, we used the David reimplantation technique in 40 patients with an aortic root aneurysm. Eighteen patients had Marfan syndrome. Their median age was 29 years (13-55 years). Echocardiography showed that the median diameter of the aortic sinus was 53 mm (46-59 mm). RESULTS: In 17 patients, aortic valve preservation was possible. No patient died during hospitalization and there were no significant complications. On echocardiography at discharge, no patient had greater than grade-II aortic regurgitation. During a median follow-up period of 8 months (1-24 months), one patient died due to rupture of an abdominal aneurysm. The others are all in New York Heart Association class I. CONCLUSIONS: Preservation of the aortic valve by means of valve reimplantation produced excellent results. It avoided both the thromboembolic and hemorrhagic complications associated with prostheses and the need for long-term anticoagulation. If reimplanted valves continue to function adequately over the long term, this technique should become the treatment of choice for aneurysms of the ascending aorta in patients with Marfan syndrome.