Monday, July 26, 2010

“Daniel Finch resurrects the TV star in Pipeline” plus 2 more

“Daniel Finch resurrects the TV star in Pipeline” plus 2 more

Daniel Finch resurrects the TV star in Pipeline

Posted: 26 Jul 2010 02:05 PM PDT

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Five Filters featured article: "Peace Envoy" Blair Gets an Easy Ride in the Independent. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

New Book Offers Cutting-Edge Perspective on Causes of Schizophrenia; Related Disorders

Posted: 26 Jul 2010 12:46 PM PDT

Newswise — About 1 in 10 people have the potential to develop schizophrenia, but only 1 in 100 actually end up with this devastating illness. The challenge is in knowing why some do and some don't.

Drawing from over 25 years of laboratory study, Mark F. Lenzenweger, a distinguished professor of clinical science, neuroscience and cognitive psychology at Binghamton University, thinks that not only does he have the makings of a good response to this troubling question but also how to go about finding those answers.

In his latest book, Schizotypy and Schizophrenia: The View from Experimental Psychopathology, Lenzenweger explores lessons he has learned in the psychological science laboratory while probing the broader questions of how to think about and conduct psychopathology research.

"The liability for schizophrenia is relatively prevalent and common in our population," said Lenzenweger. "Therefore, understanding why someone goes on to develop the illness is a high priority research question. I firmly believe that those who harbor this liability but do not develop the full-blown illness of schizophrenia may hold the key to this puzzle. Since this is an ongoing challenge for our society, training the next generation in how to think about and conduct psychopathology research is just as vital. So what I've tried to do is combine both of those elements in a way that I hope will appeal to both the experienced research and those just starting out."

The book traces Lenzenweger's intense efforts to find answers using laboratory and statistical procedures by examining a host of related conceptual issues, data analytic strategies and methodical viewpoints that he has found helpful over the years. Using clinical anecdotes and research recollection, Lenzenweger hopes that readers will develop an appreciation for those substantive issues that have and are currently pressing (and interesting) on the causes of schizophrenia and related disorders.

"Schizophrenia is perhaps the costliest form of mental illness," said Lenzenweger. "In addition, it has a strong genetic component; about 80 percent of what determines schizophrenia is related to genetic influences. All people with schizophrenia share a personality organization known as schizotypy. And the person who carries shizotypy is known as a schizotype. Yet not all schizotypes are schizophrenic. In fact, the vast majority of schizotypes do not go on to develop the illness. So it stands to reason that the study of schizotypic individuals offers a unique perspective on what might cause the illness."

According to Lenzenweger, the way forward in understanding the causes and development of schizophrenia will be complex and difficult terrain.

"There will be no simple solution or discovery the remedies the entire problem," said Lenzenweger. "But I hope that my book will chart the course for the field as it stands currently and show the way forward for the generation to come."

Schizotypy and Schizophrenia: The View from Experimental Psychopathology was released this month by Guilford Press. For more, http://www.guilford.com/cgi-bin/cartscript.cgi?page=pr/lenzenweger2.htm&sec=reviews&dir=pp/acpp&cart_id=907379.19960

About Mark F. Lenzenweger: Lenzenweger, who joined Binghamton's faculty in 2001, is an internationally renowned researcher in the areas of schizophrenia as well as personality disorder. He concurrently has directed the landmark Longitudinal Study of Personality Disorder, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, that continues to push the frontiers of knowledge in this area, Lenzenweger, a prolific writer, is also an adjunct professor of psychology in psychiatry at the Weill College of Medicine at Cornell University in New York City. He began his academic career at Cornell, where he was a member of the tenured faculty, and he moved on to a professorial post at Harvard. He holds doctoral and master's degrees in clinical psychology (experimental psychopathology) from Yeshiva University as well as a bachelor's degree in psychology from Cornell University. In 2006, Lenzenweger received the State University of New York Award for Research and Scholarship as well as the Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activities. A year later, he was promoted to distinguished professor, a tenured University ranking that is conferred for consistently extraordinary accomplishment.

For more Binghamton University research news, visit http://discovere.binghamton.edu/


Five Filters featured article: "Peace Envoy" Blair Gets an Easy Ride in the Independent. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

What Does Your Avatar Say About You? New Concordia University Study Compares Virtual Self With The Real Deal

Posted: 26 Jul 2010 02:22 PM PDT

Posted on: Monday, 26 July 2010, 14:35 CDT

Old or young, beautiful or sinister - the choices are endless when designing an avatar or a virtual alter ego. In the end, do people choose one that is really different from themselves? Usually not, according to new Concordia University research that shows in most cases, avatars reflect the personality of their creators. The study, published in next month's issue of Psychology and Marketing, has implications for real-life companies who would like to reach both the virtual and real-world markets.

"It is estimated that by 2011, 80 percent of Internet consumers and Fortune 500 companies will have an avatar or presence in a virtual community," says Dr. H. Onur Bodur a professor at the Concordia John Molson School of Business. "There is limited research about these environments thus we undertook the task of understanding the consumers behind avatars."

Second Life a burgeoning virtual world

Dr. Bodur and a former graduate student, Jean-Francois Belisle, studied the avatar-creator behaviour in the virtual community Second Life. "This virtual world stands out because it has its own economy, where real-money transactions occur," says Belisle. "Membership in the avatar world has increased more than twentyfold between 2006 to 2009 and has reached about 15 million."

Avatar-creators were asked to fill out a questionnaire about their personalities and these characteristics were compared with the impression their avatars made on viewers. Physical traits such as hair length and colour, body shape, style and type of clothes provided visual clues about the human behind the avatar.

"Overall, the impressions made by the physical traits of the avatar match certain dimensions of the true personality of the creator," says Dr. Bodur. "For example, attractive avatars with stylish hair and clothes were perceived to be extroverted. This was confirmed by the personality measures obtained from Second Life participants."

"This correlation between avatar and creator helps identify the consumers behind the avatars and will lead to improved avatar-marketing strategy. Our findings will also help guide the choice of visual cues in the design of corporate avatars representing real-world companies."

About the Study:

"Avatars as Information: Perception of Consumers Based on Their Avatars in Virtual Worlds," was authored by Jean-Francois Belisle and H. Onur Bodur from Concordia University.

Partners in Research

This study was funded by the RBC Research Chair at HEC Montréal, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), the John Molson School of Business at Concordia University and the Fond de la recherche sur la société et la culture (FQRSC).

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