While social media has emerged as one of the primary sources for accessing information over the past decade, this has had the consequence of easily spreading misinformation, including conspiracy...Show moreWhile social media has emerged as one of the primary sources for accessing information over the past decade, this has had the consequence of easily spreading misinformation, including conspiracy theories. This study investigates whether experts are more credible than non-experts in debunking conspiracy theories and whether the use of a warm communication style is more credible in debunking conspiracy theories than the use of a communication style without warmth. Additionally, it investigates the correlation between narcissistic traits in individuals and their susceptibility to conspiracy beliefs. A 2x2 within-subject design was used to research 179 participants who were exposed to a refutation of a conspiracy theory by either experts or non-experts, using either warm communication or communication without warmth. Results show that expertise significantly influences the effectiveness of debunking conspiracy theories. In contrast to our expectations, warmth does not influence this effectiveness. Furthermore, a positive correlation was found between narcissistic traits and general belief in conspiracy theories. These results emphasize the importance of expertise, communication style and personality traits in counteracting the spread of misinformation. Future research could explore the impact of different types of expertise and develop strategies to reduce susceptibility to conspiracy theories among individuals with high levels of narcissistic traits.Show less
Empathizing involves the understanding and responding to an individuals’ emotions, while systemizing refers to the understanding and the ability to predict systems. The topics of empathizing and...Show moreEmpathizing involves the understanding and responding to an individuals’ emotions, while systemizing refers to the understanding and the ability to predict systems. The topics of empathizing and systemizing have been studied in children and adults. However, as far as we are aware, no research has investigated these constructs in adolescence, whereas there is a lot of development that takes place during this period. Earlier studies found gender differences in systemizing and empathizing, with males scoring significantly higher on systemizing, while females scored significantly higher on empathizing. This study examined the current gap in research, by examining the relationship between empathizing and systemizing in adolescence and possible gender differences. We did this by estimating network models with partial correlations (Gaussian graphical model) and calculating bridge centrality which identified nodes. These nodes acted as important bridges between one or more communities (e.g., the relationship between understanding of empathizing and motoric systemizing), for both male and female participants. We utilized data from the empathizing and systemizing questionnaire in 6,644 adolescents (2574 males and 4070 females, aged 13-24 years old), which we obtained from the Open-Source Psychometrics Project. We found gender differences in the relationships between empathizing and systemizing nodes in the male and female networks. For instance, in the female network, a correlation was found between the subconstructs feeling of empathizing and natural systems, while in the male network no correlation was found between the two. Moreover, understanding of others’ feelings showed to be highly correlated with all subconstructs of systemizing in all three networks but was not correlated with other subconstructs of empathizing. This study provided a foundation for further exploration of how the constructs of empathizing and systemizing are related and could be used to help guide the design of gender-specific interventions aimed at enhancing both empathizing and systemizing skills in adolescence.Show less
This study examined the relationship between internalizing problem behavior and parental skills in children with sex chromosome trisomy (SCT). Focusing on children aged 1 to 7 years, it compared...Show moreThis study examined the relationship between internalizing problem behavior and parental skills in children with sex chromosome trisomy (SCT). Focusing on children aged 1 to 7 years, it compared them with typically developing peers. The hypothesis that children with SCT exhibit more internalizing problem behavior was confirmed; they scored significantly higher on anxious and withdrawn behavior. No significant difference was found in parental skills between parents of children with SCT and those of the control group, suggesting interventions for internalizing problem behavior may be universally applicable. Results indicate that only parental positive affect was significantly associated with internalizing problem behavior in children with SCT. This finding suggests that parents of children who exhibit a relatively high degree of internalizing problem behavior, may display more positive affect as an adaptive response to their children’s needs. No other parental skills were found to significantly contribute to the explanation of internalizing behavior. Factors other than parental skills, such as biological, psychological or environmental factors, may have a greater impact on the development of internalizing behavior in children with SCT. The study is limited by its cross-sectional nature and the selectivity of the sample, which may affect the generalizability of the results. Nevertheless, this research provides insight into the parenting skills of parents of children with SCT and offers an initial examination of the relationship between these skills and internalizing behavior in children with SCT. Additionally, it contributes to a better understanding of SCT in young children and underscores the importance of early identification and appropriate interventions to prevent more severe internalizing problems later in life.Show less
Rationale: Studies show a direct, dose-response link between childhood maltreatment and insomnia in adulthood. Insomnia is often a precursor of depressive and anxiety disorders. Moreover, insomnia...Show moreRationale: Studies show a direct, dose-response link between childhood maltreatment and insomnia in adulthood. Insomnia is often a precursor of depressive and anxiety disorders. Moreover, insomnia may be an important transdiagnostic factor in the impact of childhood maltreatment on depression and anxiety. The association of childhood maltreatment subtypes with adulthood insomnia in clinical and control populations remains unclear. Objectives: To investigate the contributions of the (1) overall severity of childhood maltreatment and (2) severity of childhood maltreatment subtypes to the long-term burden of adulthood insomnia with and without lifetime depressive and/or anxiety disorders. Methods: Data (N = 1609; nclinical = 1285) was obtained from the Netherlands Study of Depression and Anxiety, a naturalistic multi-site project containing six assessment waves over nine years. Measurements included the Composite Interview Diagnostic Instrument - lifetime version, the Women's Health Initiative Insomnia Rating Scale, and the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire - short form. Analyses included separate multiple linear regressions controlling for gender. Findings: Overall childhood maltreatment correlated positively with the long-term burden of insomnia among clinical and control samples. All maltreatment subtypes were associated positively with the insomnia burden in the clinical sample, and only emotional abuse with the burden among controls. Females showed a higher burden than males in analyses with subtypes among controls. Conclusions: Further research is needed to verify the generalizability and robustness of results and explore potential risk/resilience moderators of this link. Clinical work may target insomnia prevention strategies among adults exposed to childhood maltreatment, especially females and individuals with lifetime depression and/or anxiety.Show less
Numerous lifestyle, cardiovascular, and psychosocial factors have been implicated in the development of cognitive decline and dementia. Using a person-centered approach, this study explored...Show moreNumerous lifestyle, cardiovascular, and psychosocial factors have been implicated in the development of cognitive decline and dementia. Using a person-centered approach, this study explored clustering of modifiable risk factors for cognitive decline and dementia and investigated how these clusters are associated with declines in cognition and with dementia risk. Here, cognitive decline was operationalized as declining information processing speed. The sample consisted of 3787 older adults (age 55-85) enrolled in the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam. Latent class analysis was performed over a subset of 14 lifestyle, cardiovascular, and psychosocial risk factors to identify latent subgroups. Latent growth curve modelling associated membership in identified subgroups with trajectories of processing speed. Logistic regression associated group membership with incidence of probable dementia (n=2611). A four-class solution was deemed to optimally represent the sample. Next to a large group with no specific salient features (n=845, 75.1%), other groups reflected pronounced depressive symptoms (n=324, 8.6%), cardiometabolic risk (n=410, 10.8%), and high physical activity (n=208, 5.5%), respectively. Latent growth curve modeling suggested that declines in processing speed accelerated with age, but latent class membership did not seem to affect these declines. Compared to the normative group, the depressed group had lower initial levels of processing speed (β_intercept=-2.38; 95% CI=[-3.38, -1.37]; p<.001), but further trajectory differences between latent classes were not statistically significant at α=5%. No significant differences in odds of probable dementia between the normative and other groups were found. Thus, this study did not find evidence of an effect of membership in identified latent classes on the strength or rate of cognitive decline, nor dementia. To draw implications for clinical and political decision-making, future research could test the robustness of findings by replicating analyses in similar cohorts, examine the utility of other grouping structures, consider inclusion of alternative risk factors, and investigate auxiliary outcome measures of cognitive decline and dementia.Show less
In this thesis, we investigate the co-deposition of cesium and antimony to develop efficient Cs3Sb photocathodes for Optical Near-field Electron Microscopy (ONEM), aiming to achieve ultra-smooth,...Show moreIn this thesis, we investigate the co-deposition of cesium and antimony to develop efficient Cs3Sb photocathodes for Optical Near-field Electron Microscopy (ONEM), aiming to achieve ultra-smooth, ultra-thin photocathodes with high quantum efficiency. The project involved implementing, designing and calibrating new equipment, such as a Dual Cluster Source evaporator, a Quartz Crystal Monitor, a QE measurement setup and a custom transfer arm extension with sample heater for temperature controlled growth. All the equipment is installed in the preparation chamber of the ESCHER LEEM, where we have successfully grown several photocathodes. Ultimately, a photocathode grown in the preparation chamber, with a measured moderate QE of around 0.3% at 450 nm light, has been successfully utilized for the first time to obtain an ONEM image of a biological sample.Show less
In this work, a novel approach for tuning a single quantum dot photon source by the quantum confined stark effect by way of external contacts is presented. This is achieved by building a quantum...Show moreIn this work, a novel approach for tuning a single quantum dot photon source by the quantum confined stark effect by way of external contacts is presented. This is achieved by building a quantum dot (QD) single photon source (SPS) from the bottom up. A QD is a semiconductor island grown using self-assembly on a different semiconductor, such that an electron in a QD is confined in three spatial dimensions and its energy band structure changes into discrete energy levels. In this work such a sample with many indium gallium arsenide QDs is investigated, first its known properties are probed in order to confirm that this is a candidate for a ”good” SPS. Then, a mount with external gates is fabricated in which the sample can be inserted, in order to tune its emission frequency by the quantum confined stark effect, which can be used to due the energy levels of the QD. This method is in principle much simpler compared to traditional methods, and we show first steps towards a single photon source using our method.Show less
Introduction As dementia prevalence increases, more individuals are becoming caregivers for family members with dementia. This role can negatively impact the caregiver's quality of life (QoL), even...Show moreIntroduction As dementia prevalence increases, more individuals are becoming caregivers for family members with dementia. This role can negatively impact the caregiver's quality of life (QoL), even when the person with dementia resides in a nursing home. This study aimed to identify factors influencing caregivers' well-being. We investigated whether the type and stage of dementia, the QoL of the person with dementia, and their interactions could predict the family caregiver's QoL. Methods This study included 205 elderly participants with dementia from 19 nursing homes and their family caregivers. It measured the type of dementia by using a physician’s diagnosis, stage of dementia using the Bedford Alzheimer Nursing Severity-Scale (BANS-S) ( M = 14.92, SD = 4.58), QoL of the person with dementia using the Quality of Life in Late-Stage Dementia (QUALID) scale (M = 22.88, SD = 7.96 ), and caregiver QoL using a scale question from the TOPICS-MDS questionnaire (M = 7.36 , SD = 1.18). A general linear model was employed to analyze the data. Results Neither the type of dementia (F(3, 189) = 0.62, p = 0.6030), stage of dementia (F(1, 189) = 0.871, p = 0.352), nor the QoL of the person with dementia (F(1, 189) = 0.225, p = 0.636) predicted the QoL of the family caregiver. Additionally, no interactions between these factors were significant predictors of the family caregiver’s QoL (Type x Stage; F(3, 189) = .264, p = .851) (Type x QoL); F(3, 189) =.548 , p =.650) (Stage x QoL; F(1, 189) = .388, p = .534) (Type x Stage x QoL; F(3, 189) =.149, p = .930). Discussion None of the characteristics nor their interactions were able to predict the caregiver's quality of life. These results contradict earlier research. Possible explanations are the violations of certain assumptions within the GLM, the methods that were used to measure the variables and the difference in care setting between this study and previous studies. Further investigation is needed to clarify these discrepancies and refine our understanding of factors affecting family caregivers' QoL.Show less
In recent years, many advancements have been made in the field of Simulation-Based Inference (SBI), due to the lack of tractable likelihoods in modern physics experiments. In the High-Energy...Show moreIn recent years, many advancements have been made in the field of Simulation-Based Inference (SBI), due to the lack of tractable likelihoods in modern physics experiments. In the High-Energy Physics (HEP) literature, a popular choice for doing SBI is by using binary classifiers, which can be used to obtain likelihood ratios by means of the likelihood-ratio trick. In the Astrophysics literature, on the other hand, more research is done on Normalizing Flows, which directly model the likelihoods. In this thesis, we compare the two methods, assessing their performance on a general HEP problem: inference of a signal ratio in the presence of a nuisance parameter. We perform this comparison on both a toy Gaussian example and a realistic Higgs decay example and do not find a clear winner over the two cases. We do find interesting qualitative differences, especially for poorly performing models, suggesting that it may be beneficial to implement both methods rather than selecting just one.Show less
Empathic Accuracy (EA) is an important skill in parenting. It promotes positive self- concept in adolescents and is a predictor for individual and family adjustment. Factors may influence parental...Show moreEmpathic Accuracy (EA) is an important skill in parenting. It promotes positive self- concept in adolescents and is a predictor for individual and family adjustment. Factors may influence parental EA, such as parental childhood maltreatment and parental or adolescent depression. Using a sample of 201 parents (55.2% mothers), this study measured with linear regression whether parental childhood maltreatment and parental depression contributed to parents misattributing their children’s negative emotions in the context of a conflict task. Adolescent depression was considered as a covariate. Parental childhood maltreatment, and depression of both adolescents and parents were measured using a self-report questionnaire. Parents (Mage = 49.31) and their adolescent child (Mage = 15.81) then participated in a video- recorded task, in which they were asked to solve a conflict. Afterwards, parents had to indicate how they thought their child was feeling on a 7-point Likert scale for positive and negative emotions during high affect moments in this task. The results suggested that parents who have experienced childhood maltreatment, but not parents who suffered from depression, tended to overestimate their children’s negative emotions during the conflict task, showing a negative bias. Additionally, when an adolescent was suffering from depression, parents tended to underestimate their negative emotions. These findings highlight that EA is an interactive process which may be influenced by different factors (e.g. parental childhood maltreatment, adolescent depression). This knowledge can make parents more aware of biases they might have towards the emotions of their children, and thereby improving their communicative and empathic skills.Show less
Patients with prolactinoma are often initially treated with dopamine agonists (DAs). Although in many cases effective, DAs can cause severe (psychological) side effects and sometimes require...Show morePatients with prolactinoma are often initially treated with dopamine agonists (DAs). Although in many cases effective, DAs can cause severe (psychological) side effects and sometimes require lifelong intake. Neurosurgical counseling offers an alternative treatment option. The current study investigated whether neurosurgical counseling leads to better outcomes than DA treatment regarding adverse mood symptoms, health-related quality of life (HRQoL), and disease burden in patients with prolactinoma. A preliminary analysis of the Prolactinoma Clinical Trial-study was conducted. Patients were included in a randomized controlled trial or the observational arm, receiving either neurosurgical counseling or DA treatment. Adverse mood symptoms (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale; HADS), HRQoL (Short-Form Health Survey; SF-36), and disease burden (Leiden Bothers and Needs Questionnaire; LBNQ) were measured at baseline and 12 months follow-up. Demographic and clinical variables were derived from electronic patient files. To investigate the effects of time, group, and time*group interaction, multivariate linear mixed models were performed on outcomes of the HADS, SF-36, and LBNQ, controlling for age, sex, and prolactin levels at baseline. Data were available for 71, 61, and 69 patients in the analysis on the HADS, SF-36, and LBNQ, respectively. A larger decline in anxiety symptoms was found in the group of neurosurgical counseling (time*group; B = -3.66 (95% CI [-5.85 – -1.47]), p = .001) compared to the DA group. Prolactin levels at baseline were predictive of more adverse mood symptoms, lower mental well-being, and more perceived bothers at 12 months follow-up (all p < .004). Neurosurgical counseling showed comparable effects to DA treatment in terms of HRQoL and disease burden but was superior at relieving anxiety symptoms. Furthermore, prolactin levels emerged as a more potent predictor of these outcomes than the choice of treatment. These findings may optimize treatment for patients with prolactinoma, addressing their mood, emotional well-being, and HRQoL.Show less
Decisions made at child protection sittings significantly impact the lives of children and their families. Therefore, it is crucial to investigate the factors influencing these decisions. Previous...Show moreDecisions made at child protection sittings significantly impact the lives of children and their families. Therefore, it is crucial to investigate the factors influencing these decisions. Previous research indicates that these decisions are not always made correctly and exhibit substantial variability. This study utilizes the Decision Making Ecology Model to analyse the influence of risk assessment tools and work experience on these decisions. Data were collected through a questionnaire and a case file study. The analyses show that the use of risk assessment tools has a significant impact on the decisions made. Work experience did not have a significant direct influence, but the use of risk assessment tools indirectly affected work experience, which in turn had a small effect on the final decisions.Show less
Within school environments many texts are read on screens. These screens are often multifunctional and used for multiple tasks. This opens up the possibility of distractions in the form of pop-up...Show moreWithin school environments many texts are read on screens. These screens are often multifunctional and used for multiple tasks. This opens up the possibility of distractions in the form of pop-up notifications. The current study looks at the effect of pop-up notifications on reading comprehension. It makes use of the contradiction paradigm, which uses reading times to comment on the storing of information in a reader’s working memory. The paradigm can be used when comparing consistent stories with contradicting stories. Target sentences in contradicting stories are read slower than the same sentences in consistent stories. In the current study twenty-one participants, read a total of 60 stories. Half of these stories are interrupted by pop-ups, making four conditions: uninterrupted consistent; uninterrupted contradicting; interrupted consistent stories and interrupted, contradicting stories. The reading times of the target sentences in different conditions are compared. The first research question focuses on the overall effect of pop-ups on reading comprehension, by comparing the reading times in all four conditions. No significant difference in reading times was found. Therefore no evidence was found for an effect of pop-ups on reading comprehension. Research question two looked into a difference in response to the interruption, between people with lower and higher levels of reading skills. Participants were divided into two groups based on a Maze Task. The results show no significant difference in reading times between the groups. The last research question looked at the effect of interruptions on the answering of comprehension questions asked directly after reading the texts. There was no significant difference in the percentage of questions answered correctly between interrupted and uninterrupted texts. Therefore no evidence was found for an effect of pop-up notifications on reading comprehension. In total the current study found no evidence of a negative effect of pop-ups on reading comprehension.Show less
