Several authors have characterized a striking phenomenon of perceptual learning in visual discrimination tasks. This learning process is selective for the stimulus characteristics and location in the visual field. Since the human visual system exploits symmetry for object recognition we were interested in exploring how it learns to use preattentive symmetry cues for discriminating simple, meaningless, forms. In this study, similar to previous studies of perceptual learning, we asked whether the effects of practice acquired in the discrimination of pairs of (...) shape with a specific orientation of the symmetry axis would transfer to the discrimination of shapes with different orientation of symmetry axis, or to shapes presented in different areas of the visual field. We found that there was no learning transfer between forms with very different axes of symmetry (90° apart). Interestingly, however, we found a transfer of learning effect to horizontally oriented symmetry axis from a condition with an axis of symmetry differing by 45°. Also it appears that some subjects took a longer time to learn than the typical fast learning paradigm would predict. Data showed that when observers practice discrimination of meaningless symmetric forms, consistent improvement in the performance occurs. This improvement is lasting over days, and it tends to be specific for the area of the visual field trained. We will discuss results from some of the observers whose learning was not fast, but who actually improved with more practice and with large time intervals (1 day) between training sessions. (shrink)

Graduate education is a critical period in shaping and fostering graduate students' awareness about the importance of responsible conduct of research and knowledge and skills in doing good science. However, there is a lack of a standard curriculum and assessment framework for graduate students in Taiwan. The aim of this study was to develop a literacy-based research integrity (RI) assessment framework, including five core RI areas: (1) basic concepts in RI, (2) RI considerations in the research procedure, (3) research ethics (...) and research subject protection, (4) publication and authorship, and (5) conflict of interest. The five areas were derived through a comprehensive review of major topics and areas covered in existing research integrity education and training programs and were rated by RI experts with adequate content validity. Test items on the five core areas were developed across three literacy levels: remembering and understanding, applying and analyzing, and evaluating and creating. Seven thousand and eighty-seven graduate-level trainees took an 18-unit RI course covering the five RI areas. Upon finishing the course, trainees completed a computer-based RI assessment randomly selected from 26 RI testing booklets. The design of test items followed the mastery-oriented assessment principles to promote trainees’ learning of RI with adaptive assessment feedback. Results showed that the items in the RI assessment had adequate discrimination and low difficulty level. Thus, the RI assessment can be used to assess a range of trainees’ RI literacy and can provide the most information in identifying trainees in need of more instruction or alternative training. The low guessing parameters also indicated the online RI assessment had an appropriate control of test exposure and cheating prevention. Higher education authorities can use this framework to assess graduate students' RI literacy based on a standard curriculum and prepare them for conversations about the responsible conduct of research for RI culture-building. (shrink)

On the seventh page of the People's Daily for April 15, 1958, Ma T'e published an article entitled "Discussions of Problems of Logic." In his conclusion he critically evaluates many people and even classifies me as a revisionist who must be criticized. I have studied this article closely and feel that it is shot through with difficulties.

The financial crisis of 2007–2008 and the COVID-19 pandemic have caused many enterprises to suffer great losses. Thus, companies have to take measures such as pays cut, furloughs, or layoffs, which caused dissatisfaction among employees and triggered labor disputes. Therefore, this study explores the service-oriented organizational citizenship behavior based on the decomposed theory of planned behavior in order to understand the behavioral intentions of employees through their mental states, job attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. This study conducted questionnaire (...) surveys for employees in different industries, collected 281 valid questionnaires, and applied Structural Equation Model for the analysis. The results show: employees believe organizational justice in the organization is important, and when they feel treated fairly, their job attitudes and beliefs are enhanced. Employees’ job attitudes and beliefs support service-oriented organizational citizenship behavior, in other words, they have positive job attitudes and beliefs and will actively provide better service to customers. When employees are treated reasonably and fairly by the organization and have positive job attitudes and perceived behavior control, their spontaneous service-oriented organizational citizenship behavior is stimulated, thus increasing organizational development. (shrink)

This research aims at exploring the underlying mechanisms how consumers respond to statistical and narrative health claims when they evaluate food products. Moreover, personality traits and product-related information are also incorporated to discuss their effects on the relationship between message types and consumers’ food product evaluation. The results indicate that statistical health claims are more persuasive than narrative health claims. In addition, the results show that individuals’ health knowledge, NFC moderate the relationship between message types and product evaluation. It argues (...) that individuals with limited health knowledge evaluate food product more favorably when statistical health claims are used, while individuals with more health knowledge evaluate food product more favorably when narrative health claims are used. Moreover, it reveals that individuals with high NFC evaluate food product more favorably when statistical health claims are used, while individuals with low NFC evaluate food product more favorably when narrative health claims are used. (shrink)

In this paper, have two parts: the first is the critical part, in this section I will critically pointed out that the reductionism of the research project in the face of ideas and language to explain the dualism of the plight of the game, only to avoid paying with phenomenology price. Followed by the construction of the part, I will be back "perspective of dualism," the anthropological roots, and this "perspective dualism" itself does not exclude a unified view of natural (...) evolution. On the "spirit of the decision situation of the brain" and "the spirit of stylized brain," the complex interactions between the images is a philosophical reflection of the results, rather than the results of natural science knowledge itself. I represent a non-scientific or a "soft" the naturalistic point of view and attempt to obtain a between Kant and Darwin compatible views. This article mainly has two parts: First is the critique part, I will criticize in this part and it will be pointed out that when the reductional research plan will face the dualism's difficult situation of the explanation viewpoint and the language game, it tries only to avoid to pay the price of epiphenomenon. Next constructs the construction part, I will recall the anthropological root of "the perspective dualism", because this "the perspective dualism" itself has not certainly repelled the unified viewpoint of the natural theory of evolution. About the complex interactive image between "cerebrum" and "spirit" is one philosophical reflexive achievement, but is not the natural sciences knowledge itself achievement. I represent one kind of non-science or "soft" naturalism viewpoint and try obtaining the compatible opinion between Kant and Darwin. (shrink)

This paper provides an ethical reflection on “children’s autonomy” from the perspective of cross-cultural bioethics based on theories related to Asian values. The author supports the premise of “children’s” autonomy and explores the differences between Western and non-Western cultures regarding claims of children’s autonomy. By comparing the legal regulations on children’s medical decisions in the USA, the UK, Japan, and Taiwan, the paper illustrates the national legal differences in children’s decision-making, even under the influence of similar Asian cultural values. The (...) author further explains, adopting Tsai’s “Confucian two-dimensional personhood theory” and Markus and Kitayama’s “Construal of Self” theory, that although Asian countries like Taiwan have historically been influenced by relational personhood dimension and interdependent self-construal orientation, individual autonomy and children’s medical decisions are significantly affected or limited by family or parental determinism. However, under the influence of global human rights values and universal bioethical principles, the conceptions, legislations, and practices have evolved towards respecting individual rights and autonomous choices. Hereby, Tsai’s two-dimensional personhood theory can balance the tension between individual autonomy and family determinism, as well as between children’s autonomy and paternalism. This theoretical framework can provide a rational resolution to the long-standing cross-cultural bioethical controversy regarding individual autonomy and family determinism, and offer insights and solutions for pediatric ethics and children’s medical decisions under Asian values. (shrink)

In recent years, organizations worldwide have widely applied the project approach in business and value delivery. Negotiation is essential to the success of a project; however, it has not been explored systematically in the project context. A gap remains between knowledge and practical behavior during negotiation settlements throughout projects. Many project procurement negotiations do not work as expected. This study develops a practical framework using the scientific method to help close the gap and improve PP negotiations. The proposed framework uses (...) the fuzzy TOPSIS method to integrate the PP management process and the three-phase negotiating model. Through this approach, notable variables and potential solutions under uncertain negotiation situations are quantitatively examined in the early stage and managed until the completion of PP. Thus, expected agreements can be obtained in a timely and efficient manner, with negotiating parties committing to implementing what has been agreed on. Such a commitment facilitates win-win outcomes. An example is presented to demonstrate how the proposed framework operates, and practical implications for managers of project-based organizations are offered. This study provides researchers and practitioners with a foundation to study refined models to enhance project negotiations with interdisciplinary integration. (shrink)

ABSTRACTThis essay is arranged into three sections to present the traditional Chinese rendering and publishing process of The Grasshopper: Games, Life, and Utopia: copyright and publishers;...

The present study investigates Taiwanese graduate students’ general understanding and misunderstanding of Responsible Conduct of Research. A total of 580 graduate students responded to the self-developed Responsible Conduct of Research Reasoning Test. The results reveal that, first, students did not have sufficient knowledge to reason why a particular instance of research conduct was doable or not. Second, the statistical results show that female students, students majoring in the humanities or the social sciences, doctoral-level students, and students with RCR-related training outperformed (...) others. In addition, the misbehaviors that students judged relatively uncritically comprise the following nine categories: seeing authorship as a property or power, misinterpreting research coauthors’ responsibilities, inaccurately conducting the informed-consent process, fabricating and falsifying research data, misinterpreting the correct citation of research sources, holding vague concepts of self-plagiarism, misinterpreting the Taiwan Copyright Act, accepting duplicate-publication practices, and accepting piecemeal publication practices. The present study discusses participative students’ major misunderstandings of actual RCR-related practices. The study also presents further implications and suggestions based on the findings. (shrink)

Spiritual depression is a term originally employed by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones to describe the phenomenon of Christians experiencing a state of the soul that is marked by an unusually potent and longstanding sense of pessimism, inadequacy, despondency, and lack of activity within one's relationship with God for what appears to be no discernable cause. Although St. John of the Cross’ The Dark Night of the Soul is arguably the most historically influential work on the subject, the English Puritans also developed (...) a robust perspective of their own–-one built upon the principles of the Reformation and a solidly Protestant perspective of the spiritual life. The Puritan concept of spiritual desertion is most lucidly articulated in a lesser-known work by Joseph Symonds titled, The Case and Cure of a Deserted Soul–-a rich and invaluable resource for contemporary pastoral care. (shrink)

The rapid development of the Internet has granted college students easy access to vast amount of online resources, and to some degree has increased the chances of plagiarism problems. A number of studies have suggested that both faculty’s and students’ perceptions toward plagiarism are found to be influential on students’ plagiarizing behaviors, and limited research has been done to explore the perceptional differences between these two roles. This study aims to respond to the growing educational concerns about plagiarism by comparing (...) the perceptions held by faculty and college students. A total of 229 faculty and 634 college students in Taiwan completed the Perceptions of Student Plagiarism Questionnaire designed for the study. The results reveal that faculty held stricter standards than those of students. Results also indicate various causes of plagiarism, such as no interest in the learning subjects, lack of citation knowledge, or lack of research ability. Furthermore, significant disciplinary differences were shown to contribute to students’ plagiarism perception; the results reveal that most students with an Arts or Communication major held a relatively adverse thinking toward plagiarism. Last, this study provides research-based strategies for school and faculty to reduce the likelihood of plagiarism. (shrink)

Drawing on propositions from the signaling theory and expectancy theory, this study hypothesizes that the perceived corporate citizenship of job seekers positively affects a firm’s attractiveness and career success expectation. This study’s proposed research hypotheses are empirically tested using a survey of graduating MBA students seeking a job. The empirical findings show that a firm’s corporate citizenship provides a competitive advantage in attracting job seekers and fostering optimistic career success expectation. Such findings substantially complement the growing literature arguing that corporate (...) citizenship brings firms competitive advantages without solid evidence from the perspective of recruitment and human resources. Finally, managerial implications and limitations of this study are also discussed. (shrink)

Deep Brain Stimulation is an invasive device-based neuromodulation technique that allows the therapeutic direct stimulation of subcortical and deep cortical structures following the surgical placement of stimulating electrodes. DBS is approved by the U.S. Federal Drug Administration for the treatment of movement disorders and obsessive-compulsive disorder, while new indications, including Major Depressive Disorder, are in experimental development. We report the case of a patient with MDD who received DBS to the ventral internal capsule and ventral striatum bilaterally and presented with (...) 2 weeks of voltage-dependent Tourette-like symptoms including brief transient episodes of abrupt-onset and progressively louder coprolalia and stuttered speech; tic-like motor behavior in his right arm and leg; rushes of anxiety, angry prosody, angry affect; and moderate amnesia without confusion. We describe the results of the inpatient neuropsychiatric workup leading to the diagnosis of iatrogenic voltage-dependent activation of cortico-subcortical circuits and discuss insights into the pathophysiology of Tourette as well as safety considerations raised by the case. (shrink)

Against the backdrop of economic internationalization and market globalization, the world has witnessed faster competitive contents with a more dynamic market environment, a more rapid technological innovation, and more diverse customer needs. Thus, for every enterprise especially led by entrepreneurs, the focus is to maintain the sustainability of competitive advantages and dynamically transform core capacity to avoid rigidity. This paper introduces the process of the deepened rigidity in WS Co. Company, which occurs due to the wrong cognition of Dr. S (...) and his teams who managed or failed to respond to the rigidity encountered by the company during different periods. The rigidity of its capacity is believed to be caused by the cognitive errors of the entrepreneur and his team facing every period of potential rigidity, which makes them fail to deal with it, thus leading to complete rigidity. This paper intends to explain how rigidity takes shape from the cognitive aspect of senior managers, which may serve as illuminations for the similar enterprises led by entrepreneurs. (shrink)

Citizenship, such as corporate citizenship and organizational citizenship, has been an important issue in business management for decades. This study proposes a research model from the perspectives of social identity and resource allocation, by examining the influence of corporate citizenship on organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs). In the model, OCBs are positively influenced by perceived legal citizenship and perceived ethical citizenship, while negatively influenced by perceived discretionary citizenship. Empirical testing using a survey of personnel from 18 large firms confirms most of (...) our hypothesized effects. Theoretical and managerial implications of our findings are discussed. (shrink)

Is reducing large-scale intergroup conflict the business of corporations? Although large corporations can use their power and prominence to reduce intergroup conflict in society, it is unclear to what extent stakeholders support corporate Intergroup Responsibility. Study 1 showed that support for CIR correlates in theoretically meaningful ways with relevant economic, social, and moral attitudes, including fair market ideology, consumer support for corporate social responsibility, social dominance orientation, symbolic racism, and moral foundations. Studies 2 and 3 employed experimental designs to test (...) the hypothesis that business leaders who advocate for intergroup tolerance boost perceptions of corporations and their leaders as moral, just, and fair, which in turn, increases stakeholders’ support for CIR. We found support for this hypothesis across two highly publicized and contentious events related to racial conflict in the U.S.: The White supremacy rally in Charlottesville and the federal government’s announcement about the planned rescinding of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals immigration policy. Specifically, exposing participants to real-world tweets by CEOs who advocated intergroup tolerance following these events increased participants’ support for CIR. This effect was mediated by heightened perceptions of corporations and their leaders as moral, just, and fair. Taken together, these findings enhance our understanding of the factors that shape stakeholders’ reactions to CIR; highlight intergroup conflict as an emerging arena for CSR; and illustrate the power of ethical intergroup leadership. (shrink)

Purpose: Sensory feedback for prosthetics is an important issue. The area of forearm stump skin that has evoked tactile sensation of fingers is defined as the projected finger map, and the area close to the PFM region that does not have ETS is defined as the non-projected finger map. Previous studies have confirmed that ETS can restore the tactile pathway of the lost finger, which was induced by stimulation of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation on the end of stump skin. This (...) study aims to reveal EEG features between the PFM and the NPFM regions of the stumps under the same TENS stimulation condition.Methods: The PFM and NPFM regions of the two subjects were stimulated with the same intensity of TENS, respectively. TENS as target stimuli are modulated according to the Oddball paradigm to evoke the P300 components.Result: The PFM regions of both subjects were able to elicit P300 components, while their NPFM regions were not able to elicit P300 components. However, this P300 appears early and has continuous positive peaks in front of it.Discussion: N30 and P300 can prove that the two subjects with PFM can perceive and recognize ETS. The heteromorphisms of the P300 waveform may be related to the difficulty in subjects’ cognition of ETS or caused by the fusion of P150, P200, and P300. (shrink)

As an excellent management tool, service guarantee can improve the competitive advantage of enterprises and allow consumers to obtain high-quality products and services. However, in the current Chinese context, this tool has not played its proper function. One important reason is the perception deviation of Chinese consumers. This research analyzes the main reasons for this deviation, puts forward related hypotheses and research models, and discusses the influence of disposition to trust of contract, perceived structural assurance, and subjective norm on service (...) guarantee perception. Also, this study discusses SGP of customers through perceived risk and quality. Through the verification of 574 sample data, the main conclusions are as follows: Disposition to trust of contract, subjective norms, and PSA significantly affect SGP positively; SGP positively affects customer value ; and SGP s are obviously different between people of different ages, education levels, and income levels. Hopefully, these conclusions can have the following enlightenment to enterprises serving Chinese consumers: in the designing stage of service guarantee, perception of customers of this guarantee should be a consideration; CUV can be a proper direction if an enterprise wish to lead the guarantee perception of the customer; Not all products need the same level of service guarantee; and The proper service guarantee level depends on various statistical characteristics of target customers of the service. (shrink)

The twenty-first century is arguably the century of computing. In such a world saturated by computing, Computational Thinking is now recognized as a foundational competency for being an informed citizen and being successful in STEM work. Nevertheless, how to effectively import different types of teaching methods in university courses is subjected to further evaluation. Currently, the arguments in favor of tangible robots including high interaction, great practicality, and specific operation results make themselves to be often used as a teaching medium (...) and tool for teaching activities between teachers and students. Hence, in addition to cultivating students with computational thinking ability, this paper discussed how to integrate tangible robots into project-based learning courses of thinking skills training to improve the learning performance of the computational thinking ability. This study conducted in one semester on the 105 students from three classes. Experimental results show that the project-based learning method integrated with the teaching material of robotic visual programs approach had significantly better effectiveness in improving students' learning achievements than the traditional teaching method integrated with paper practice teaching materials approach. Analysis of the questionnaire results showed that the proposed learning approach did not increase the students' cognitive burden. In sum, the proposed approach helps students' learning achievement and cognitive load. (shrink)

Corporate citizenship represents various organizational activities and status related to the organization's societal and stakeholder obligations. This study develops five different dimensions of corporate citizenship and examines the relationship between the five dimensions and purchase intention by including two key mediators. In the proposed model of this study, purchase intention is indirectly affected by economic, legal, ethical, general philanthropic, and strategic philanthropic citizenship via the mediation of corporate identification and brand trust. Empirical testing using a survey of 353 consumers from (...) various industries confirms most of our hypothesized effects. Last, managerial implications for corporate leaders and limitations of our findings are discussed in depth. (shrink)

This paper studies a special scheduling problem under hierarchical management in nurse staff. This is a more complex rostering problem than traditional nurse scheduling. The first is that the rostering requirements of charge nurses and general nurses are different under hierarchical management. The second is that nurses are preferable for relative fair rather than absolute fair under hierarchical management. The model aims at allocating the required workload to meet the operational requirements, weekend rostering preferences, and relative fairness preferences. Two hybrid (...) heuristic algorithms based on multiobjective grey wolf optimizer and three corresponding single heuristic algorithms are employed to solve this problem. The experimental results based on real cases from the Third People’s Hospital, Panzhihua, China, show that MOGWO does not as good as it does on other engineering optimization. However, the hybrid algorithms based on MOGWO are better than corresponding single algorithms on generational distance and spacing of Pareto solutions. Furthermore, for relative fair rostering objective, NSGAII-MOGWO has more power to find the optimal solution in the dimension of relative fairness. (shrink)

This chapter describes the potential far‐reaching consequences of contemplative higher education for the fields of science and medicine.

Several lines of evidence suggest that children born via Cesarean section are at greater risk for adverse health outcomes including allergies, asthma and obesity. Vaginal seeding is a medical procedure in which infants born by C-section are swabbed immediately after birth with vaginal secretions from the mother. This procedure has been proposed as a way to transfer the mother's vaginal microbiome to the child, thereby restoring the natural exposure that occurs during vaginal birth that is interrupted in the case of (...) babies born via C-section. Preliminary evidence indicates partial restoration of microbes. However, there is insufficient evidence to determine the health benefits of the procedure. Several studies, including trial, are currently underway. At the same time, in the clinic setting, doctors are increasingly being asked to by expectant mothers to have their babies seeded. This article reports on the current research on this procedure and the issues it raises for regulators, researchers, physicians, and patients. (shrink)

Given that citizenship challenges the basis and workings of the basic institutions market, state, and civil society, organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) become an important moral tenet found in some codes of ethical principles. This study explores service-oriented OCBs and their determinants. Three dimensions of service-oriented OCBs (loyalty, service delivery, and participation) are hypothetically influenced by distributive justice, procedural justice, personal cooperativeness, and the need for social approval through the mediation of organizational commitment. The three dimensions of OCBs are hypothetically influenced (...) by personal cooperativeness, need for social approval, task interdependence, and outcome interdependence through the mediation of social network ties. The model is tested using data from contact employees at several financial holding companies in Taiwan. Test results reveal that the relationships between need for social approval and organizational commitment and those between task interdependence and social network ties are insignificant, whereas all other paths are significant. This study also provides managerial implications and limitations. (shrink)

The objective of this study is to investigate the effects of emotional labor on job performance and satisfaction, as well as to examine the mediating effect of sleep problems and the moderating effects of personality traits. A time-lagged study was conducted on 864 health professionals. Scales for emotional labor, sleep, personality traits, and job satisfaction were used and job performance data was obtained from records maintained by human resources. Structural equation modeling was performed to investigate the relations. Sleep problems only (...) partially mediated the relationship between surface acting and job satisfaction but completely mediated the relationship between surface acting and job performance. Several personality traits were shown to moderate the relationship between surface acting and sleep problems. The effects were stronger for people with low agreeableness and high neuroticism. The relationship between high levels of deep acting and low levels of sleep problems was more pronounced in individuals with low extraversion. Supervisors should be conscious of emotional labor in the work context and provide necessary deep acting training to facilitate emotional regulation. (shrink)

BackgroundBreast cancer patients are at elevated risk of depression during treatment, thus provoking the chance of poor clinical outcomes. This retrospective cohort study aimed to investigate whether integrating Chinese herbal medicines citation into conventional cancer therapy could decrease the risk of depression in the long-term breast cancer survivors.MethodsA cohort of patients aged 20–70 years and with newly diagnosed breast cancer during 2000–2008 was identified from a nationwide claims database. In this study, we focused solely on survivors of breast cancer at (...) least1 year after diagnosis. After one-to-one matching for age, sex, and baseline comorbidities, breast cancer patients who received and did not receive CHM treatment were enrolled. The incidence rate and hazard ratio citation for depression between the two groups was estimated at the end of 2012. A Cox proportional hazard model was constructed to examine the impact of the CHM use on the risk of depression.ResultsDuring the study period, the incidence rate of depression was significantly lower in the treated cohort than in the untreated cohort [8.57 compared with 11.01 per 1,000 person-years citation], and the adjusted HR remained significant at 0.74 in a Cox proportional hazards regression model. The corresponding risk further decreasing to 43% among those using CHM for more than 1 year.ConclusionFinding from this investigation indicated that the lower risk of depression observed in breast cancer patients treated with CHM, suggesting that CHM treatment should be considered for disease management toward breast cancer. Yet, the optimal administered dose should be determined in further clinical trials. (shrink)

Red tourism, as a form of special interest tourism (SIT), becomes widespread among Chinese tourists. This study aims to explore memorable tourism experiences (MTEs) in red tourism destinations and examines how country competence affects intention to visit similar destinations through the influences on MTEs, destination image, red tourism place attachment, and overall satisfaction. The partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) analysis is utilized to analyze the data from 556 tourists. Empirical results reveal that country competence positively influences MTEs and (...) destination image. Furthermore, both MTEs and destination image influence overall satisfaction and red tourism place attachment, but do not influence intention to visit other similar destinations; the relationships between overall satisfaction, intention to visit other similar destinations, and place attachment are all confirmed as well. This study represents one of the few studies that classify red tourism as a form of historical-based SIT, with the purpose of promoting country competence. The outcomes provide a better understanding of both scholars and practitioners of historical-based SIT planning and businesses on how to promote destination image and country competence. (shrink)

A company’s product-harm crises often lead to negative publicity which substantially affects purchase intention. This study attempts to examine the purchase intention and its antecedents (e.g., perceived negative publicity) during product-harm crises by simultaneously including perceived corporate ability (CA) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) as moderators. In the study’s proposed model, purchase intention is indirectly affected by perceived CA, negative publicity, and CSR via the mediation of trust and affective identification. At the same time, the influences of perceived negative publicity (...) on trust and affective identification are moderated by perceived CA and CSR, respectively. Empirical testing using a survey of car users from 477 working professionals confirms most of our hypothesized effects except the insignificant moderating effects of perceived CA. Finally, managerial implications and limitations of our findings are discussed. (shrink)

Rare copy number variants have a prominent role in the aetiology of schizophrenia and other neuropsychiatric disorders. Substantial risk for schizophrenia is conferred by large CNVs at several loci, including microdeletions at 1q21.1, 3q29, 15q13.3 and 22q11.2 and microduplication at 16p11.2. However, these CNVs collectively account for a small fraction of cases, and the relevant genes and neurobiological mechanisms are not well understood. Here we performed a large two-stage genome-wide scan of rare CNVs and report the significant association of copy (...) number gains at chromosome 7q36.3 with schizophrenia. Microduplications with variable breakpoints occurred within a 362-kilobase region and were detected in 29 of 8,290 patients versus 2 of 7,431 controls in the combined sample. All duplications overlapped or were located within 89 kilobases upstream of the vasoactive intestinal peptide receptor gene VIPR2. VIPR2 transcription and cyclic-AMP signalling were significantly increased in cultured lymphocytes from patients with microduplications of 7q36.3. These findings implicate altered vasoactive intestinal peptide signalling in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia and indicate the VPAC2 receptor as a potential target for the development of new antipsychotic drugs. © 2011 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved. (shrink)