<p>Spiseforstyrrelser og fysisk aktivitet i ikke-kliniske utvalg</p><p>Hovedmålsetningen med avhandlingen var å studere spiseforstyrrelser og fysisk aktivitet i ulike ikke-kliniske utvalg. Det første steget omfattet mulige relasjoner mellom skårer på treningsavhengighet, fysisk aktivitet, og kjønn, mens det andre steget inkluderte screening av spiseforstyrrelser, samt aspekter av forstyrret spiseadferd og deres forhold til fysisk aktivitet, personlighetstrekk, kjønn og alder.</p><p>Studien viste med Artikkel I at kvinner som trener mange timer i uken skilte seg tydelig fra kvinner som trente få timer i uken når det gjaldt skårer på treningsavhengighet. Artikkel II viste kjønnsforskjeller i motivasjon til å drive fysisk aktivitet. Høye skårer på treningsavhengighet var ikke mer vanlig blant menn. I Artikkel III ble det funnet at forstyrret spiseadferd ikke er sterkt relatert til det å trene mange timer i uken. Videre viste resultatene at både kvinner og menn med høye skårer på forstyrret spiseadferd har mange felles personlighetstrekk. Resultatene i Artikkel IV viste generelt relativt høy prevalens av forstyrret spiseadferd blant 14-15-årige gutter. Både blant jenter og gutter ble det funnet høye tall på uspesifikke spiseforstyrrelser. Artikkel V sammenliknet to måleinstrumenters evne til å screene menn med spiseforstyrrelser. De to instrumentene stemte til en viss grad overens, men resultatene indikerte behovet for videre studier med kliniske utvalg for å validere EDI mot SEDs. Målsetningen med Artikkel VI var å studere utløsende faktorer relatert til episoder med overspising blant kvinner, samt konsekvenser av overspising. Resultatene viste at faktorer knyttet til start og stopp av overspising ser ut i stor grad å være av emosjonell og fysiologisk art. Relatert til forebygging og behandling vil Artikkel VI kunne bidra med viktige elementer i forhold til self-management strategier blant pasienter.</p><p>Denne avhandlingen kan være et bidrag til en bedre forståelse av det kompliserte forholdet mellom fysisk aktivitet, forstyrret spiseadferd, personlighetstrekk og kjønn i befolkningen.</p>

<p>This study re-examines whether a new instrument, Child Problematic Traits Inventory, can assess core traits of psychopathy in children. A sample of 309, 3-5 year olds, (mean age 4 ), were recruited from 3 medium sized Swedish communities. Results show that items from the test load in three dimensions: Grandiose/Deceitful, Callous/Unemotional and Impulsivity, Need for stimulation. They are related to symptoms of Conduct- and Oppositional Defiant Disorder, fearlessness, proactive- and relational aggression. The study presents evidence that psychopathic like traits can be meaningfully studied in young children and that the Child Problematic Traits Inventory is a valid instrument for assessing these traits. Future longitudinal research is needed to see whether this construct is stable and predictive for future psychopathic disorder.</p> / <p>Studien replikerar om ett nytt instrument, Child Problematic Traits Inventory, kan mäta grundläggande psykopatiska personlighetsdrag hos barn, 3-5 år. Försökspersonerna bestod av 309, 3-5 åringar (medelålder 4) från tre medelstora svenska kommuner. Resultat visar att frågor från Child Problematic Traits Inventory laddar och formar tre dimensioner, en Grandiose/Decieteful en Callous/Unemotional och en Impulsivity/Need for Stimulation. Dessa tre dimensioner är relaterade till symptom av trotssyndrom, uppförandestörning, oräddhet samt proaktiv och relationell aggression. Studien visar att psykopatiliknande drag kan bli meningsfullt studerande i barn och att Child Problematic Traits Inventory är ett bra instrument för att mäta detta. Framtida longitudinell forskning är nödvändig för att undersöka om psykopati liknande personlighetsdrag är stabila över tid samt predicerar psykopati.</p>

Processes that influence the early life stages of fishes can significantly impact population dynamics, yet they continue to be poorly understood. This dissertation examined relationships between the environment, early life history traits (ELHTs), behavior, and post-settlement survival for a coral reef fish, Stegastes partitus, in the upper Florida Keys, to elucidate how they influence juvenile demography. Otolith analysis of settlers and recruits coupled with environmental data revealed that S. partitus surviving the early juvenile period settled at larger sizes and grew slower post-settlement. Water temperature also influenced the ranges of these and other ELHTs as well as the intensity and direction of selective mortality processes acting on some of these traits (i.e., pelagic larval duration, mean larval growth). Otolith analysis was paired with behavioral observations of newly settled juvenile S. partitus in the field to reveal that the relationship between size-at-settlement, early juvenile growth and survival is behaviorally-mediated. Individuals that were larger at settlement were more active (i.e., spent less time sheltered, swam farther from shelters) and grew more slowly post-settlement. Likewise, slower juvenile growth was associated with greater activity, more conspecific aggression, and faster escape swimming speeds. A six-year time series of recruitment densities revealed substantial temporal (interannual, seasonal, lunar) and spatial (by microhabitat, conspecific density) variability in recruitment which influenced the composition of recruits. For instance, larvae settling during the darkest phases of the moon were larger at settlement, but selective mortality processes during brighter periods removed more of the smallest settlers, resulting in juveniles with similar sizes-at-settlement regardless of when they arrived to the reef. Because recruitment strength and composition varied temporally, genetic markers (6 microsatellite and 1 mitochondrial loci) were used to determine if the genetic composition of monthly cohorts of settling larvae and juveniles also varies interannually, monthly, or across life stages. A lack of genetic structure suggested that S. partitus has a large effective population size and variation in ELHTs is not likely the result of successful spawning of a disproportionately small group of adults. As a whole, these results reveal processes associated with larval supply and post-settlement life that collectively shape juvenile demography.

I studied the community of lianas in the Yasuní Forest Dynamics Plot (YFDP), in Amazonian Ecuador. I found that species diversity of lianas in valley habitat was higher than in ridge habitat, but liana abundance was similar. I also found that community structure (species composition and their abundances) of lianas in ridge was distinct from that in valley because of the differential distribution and abundance of certain species along the topographic gradient. In an attempt to explain this phenomenon deterministically, I took two approaches: (1) to explore if trait expression of leaf-based traits, wood specific gravity and stem growth rate was different among species with ridge habitat association, species with valley habitat association, and generalist species; and (2) to explore if frequencies of different whole-plant growth strategies in the forest understory—defined by whether a liana was free-standing or already climbing, by its climbing mechanism, and by its understory appearance—were different between ridge and valley. My underlying rationale was that if certain trait expression or understory growth strategy can be associated to a given species, or group of species, and such species also drive the community structure difference between ridge and valley, then ecological insight on the biological deterministic mechanisms driving the difference can be gained. I end this one-page dissertation abstract right here and purposely leave you, the reader, perplexed—I invite you to seek answers to the liana distribution conundrum in the YFDP by perusing this dissertation.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between broad and narrow personality traits and life satisfaction for college-aged and adult populations. Hypotheses were several-fold: first, that personality measures would be predictive of life satisfaction; second, that there would be differences in the correlations of Big Five personality traits and life satisfaction for both age groups; and third, that there would be differences between both age groups in the amount of variance in life satisfaction accounted for by three narrow personality traits, i.e., Optimism, Tough-Mindedness, and Work Drive. Archival data were used to compare an undergraduate sample at a Southeastern U.S. university (n=4844), and an adult sample from a database representing working adults (n=7633). Correlation and multiple regression analyses were used for each age group in examining the validity of Big Five and narrow traits and life satisfaction. A Fischer’s z score was used to determine significant differences in the correlations by age. The Big Five and narrow traits were found to be predictive of life satisfaction for both groups, with Emotional Stability and Optimism showing the highest correlation for both age groups. There were significant differences in correlations between the age groups on measures of Extraversion (z=4.64, p<.001), Agreeableness (z=1.92, p=.05), Conscientiousness (z=8.18, p<.001), Openness (z=2.44, p=.01), Work Drive (z=12.82, p<.001), and Tough-Mindedness (z=-2.87, p<.005). Results were discussed in terms of comparing the predictive validity of personality traits and life satisfaction between the two age groups. Study limitations and directions for future research were noted.

A quantitative trait locus (QTL) is the location of a gene that affects a trait that is measured on a quantitative (linear) scale. Many important agricultural traits such as weight gain, milk fat content and intramuscular fat in cattle are quantitative traits. There is a need to integrate genomic sequence data with QTL data and to develop an analytical tool to visualize the data. Without integration, application of this data to agricultural enterprise productivity will be slow and inefficient. My thesis presents a web-accessible tool called the Bovine QTL Viewer developed to solve this problem. It consists of an integrated database of bovine QTL and the QTL viewer to view the QTL and their relative chromosomal position. This tool generates dynamic and interactive images and supports research in the field of genomics. For this tool, the data is modeled and the QTL viewer is developed based on the requirements and feedback of experts in the field of bovine genomics.

Les travaux entrepris au cours de cette thèse visaient à répondre à des questions fondamentales sur la biologie évolutive des plantes adaptées aux sols contaminés par des métaux lourds. À travers une approche comparative de populations métallicoles (M : sur sols métallifères) et non métallicoles (NM : sur sol normal) de l’espèce modèle Thlaspi caerulescens, cette thèse avait donc pour objectif général d’appréhender l’adaptation aux habitats métallifères d’une manière plus globale que par le seul trait de tolérance aux métaux. Nous avons donc cherché à mettre en évidence les différences de stratégie de vie entre les populations M et NM. Nous avons également estimé le coût de l’adaptation à l’environnement métallifère. Enfin, nous avons porté une attention particulière au rôle que pouvait jouer la plasticité dans l’adaptation à l’environnement métallifère. Cette plasticité a été considérée au niveau des traits d’histoire de vie et du système racinaire. Trois expériences ont étudié les variations des traits d’histoire de vie des populations M et NM: (1) une culture en conditions contrôlées des populations sur un gradient de concentrations en Zn, (2) une expérience de transplantation réciproque in situ de populations M et NM et (3) un suivi démographique dans les populations M et NM. Enfin, une quatrième expérience (4) visait à évaluer les variations entre populations M et NM d’un trait particulier : la plasticité du système racinaire en réponse à une distribution hétérogène des métaux dans le sol. Nos résultats montrent que les plantes M ont, en moyenne, des cycles de vie plus courts que les plantes NM (exp. 1, 3). Par ailleurs, les populations M sont capables de modifier leur stratégie de reproduction en fonction des teneurs en métaux dans le sol ou du site de transplantation (métallifère vs. non métallifère). Que ce soit sur des substrats non contaminés en Zn (exp. 1) ou sur des sites non métallifères (exp. 2), les plantes M produisent autant de graines au cours de leur vie que les plantes NM. Ces résultats suggèrent l’absence d’un coût adaptatif fort chez les plantes M. In situ (exp. 3), nous avons mis en évidence un effet structurant de l’hétérogénéité spatiale des sites métallifères sur les stratégies de vie des plantes M. Enfin, les plantes M ont exprimé une plasticité plus élevée du comportement d’exploration racinaire que les plantes NM (exp. 4). L’existence de stratégies de vie plastiques, l’homéostasie de la fitness sur une large gamme de concentrations en Zn, ainsi que le faible coût adaptatif mis en évidence chez les populations M suggèrent que ces populations sont plus aptes à fonder de nouvelles populations que les populations NM. Nos résultats ont également clairement démontré que les populations M sont caractérisées par une plasticité plus élevée que les populations NM (génotype généraliste). Cette plasticité concerne à la fois les stratégies de vie et les mécanismes d’exploration racinaire. Cette plasticité élevée des plantes M a très probablement évolué en réponse à l’hétérogénéité spatiale des sites métallifères La sélection de génotypes généralistes sur les sites métallifères est une piste de recherche qui mérite, à présent, d’être approfondie chez les autres espèces colonisant les sites métallifères.

Spiseforstyrrelser og fysisk aktivitet i ikke-kliniske utvalg Hovedmålsetningen med avhandlingen var å studere spiseforstyrrelser og fysisk aktivitet i ulike ikke-kliniske utvalg. Det første steget omfattet mulige relasjoner mellom skårer på treningsavhengighet, fysisk aktivitet, og kjønn, mens det andre steget inkluderte screening av spiseforstyrrelser, samt aspekter av forstyrret spiseadferd og deres forhold til fysisk aktivitet, personlighetstrekk, kjønn og alder. Studien viste med Artikkel I at kvinner som trener mange timer i uken skilte seg tydelig fra kvinner som trente få timer i uken når det gjaldt skårer på treningsavhengighet. Artikkel II viste kjønnsforskjeller i motivasjon til å drive fysisk aktivitet. Høye skårer på treningsavhengighet var ikke mer vanlig blant menn. I Artikkel III ble det funnet at forstyrret spiseadferd ikke er sterkt relatert til det å trene mange timer i uken. Videre viste resultatene at både kvinner og menn med høye skårer på forstyrret spiseadferd har mange felles personlighetstrekk. Resultatene i Artikkel IV viste generelt relativt høy prevalens av forstyrret spiseadferd blant 14-15-årige gutter. Både blant jenter og gutter ble det funnet høye tall på uspesifikke spiseforstyrrelser. Artikkel V sammenliknet to måleinstrumenters evne til å screene menn med spiseforstyrrelser. De to instrumentene stemte til en viss grad overens, men resultatene indikerte behovet for videre studier med kliniske utvalg for å validere EDI mot SEDs. Målsetningen med Artikkel VI var å studere utløsende faktorer relatert til episoder med overspising blant kvinner, samt konsekvenser av overspising. Resultatene viste at faktorer knyttet til start og stopp av overspising ser ut i stor grad å være av emosjonell og fysiologisk art. Relatert til forebygging og behandling vil Artikkel VI kunne bidra med viktige elementer i forhold til self-management strategier blant pasienter. Denne avhandlingen kan være et bidrag til en bedre forståelse av det kompliserte forholdet mellom fysisk aktivitet, forstyrret spiseadferd, personlighetstrekk og kjønn i befolkningen.

En majoritet bland ledare i olika organisationer har en bakgrund som storasyskon eller ensambarn (Hudson, 1990). Denna studie genomfördes för att få svar på om personer med ledaransvar skiljer sig åt gällande syskonplats och locus of control jämfört med de personer som inte har ledaransvar. Ledare och medarbetare på en statlig myndighet svarade på en enkät gällande plats i syskonskara, erfarenhet av ledarskap och locus of control. Resultatet visade att sistfödda i detta urval hade en högre grad av intern locus of control än förstfödda vilket kan tyda på en annan typ av sistfödd på denna myndighet. Urvalet var dock bristfälligt (N = 48) och slutsats kunde inte dras utan att riskera ett felaktigt resultat.

This study re-examines whether a new instrument, Child Problematic Traits Inventory, can assess core traits of psychopathy in children. A sample of 309, 3-5 year olds, (mean age 4 ), were recruited from 3 medium sized Swedish communities. Results show that items from the test load in three dimensions: Grandiose/Deceitful, Callous/Unemotional and Impulsivity, Need for stimulation. They are related to symptoms of Conduct- and Oppositional Defiant Disorder, fearlessness, proactive- and relational aggression. The study presents evidence that psychopathic like traits can be meaningfully studied in young children and that the Child Problematic Traits Inventory is a valid instrument for assessing these traits. Future longitudinal research is needed to see whether this construct is stable and predictive for future psychopathic disorder. / Studien replikerar om ett nytt instrument, Child Problematic Traits Inventory, kan mäta grundläggande psykopatiska personlighetsdrag hos barn, 3-5 år. Försökspersonerna bestod av 309, 3-5 åringar (medelålder 4) från tre medelstora svenska kommuner. Resultat visar att frågor från Child Problematic Traits Inventory laddar och formar tre dimensioner, en Grandiose/Decieteful en Callous/Unemotional och en Impulsivity/Need for Stimulation. Dessa tre dimensioner är relaterade till symptom av trotssyndrom, uppförandestörning, oräddhet samt proaktiv och relationell aggression. Studien visar att psykopatiliknande drag kan bli meningsfullt studerande i barn och att Child Problematic Traits Inventory är ett bra instrument för att mäta detta. Framtida longitudinell forskning är nödvändig för att undersöka om psykopati liknande personlighetsdrag är stabila över tid samt predicerar psykopati.