This study investigates how perceptions of status and warmth of help-seekers affect the willingness of help-givers to offer help as well as the type of help they offer (autonomyoriented help...Show moreThis study investigates how perceptions of status and warmth of help-seekers affect the willingness of help-givers to offer help as well as the type of help they offer (autonomyoriented help/dependency-oriented help). Data were collected using a scenario approach (N = 205) in an experimental study, which simulated a debt assistance setting in a municipality. The variables Status (low/high) and Warmth (low/high) were investigated in a betweensubjects design. Participants completed an online survey on perceived warmth, status, and locus of attribution of a help-seeker and indicated their willingness to help as well as the type of help. It was hypothesized that warmth perceptions of help-seekers would influence the likeliness to help, that status perceptions would influence the locus of attributions as well as the type of help and that the effect between status and type of help would be mediated by the locus of attributions. The study did not find support for these hypotheses. However, exploratory analyses revealed a significant positive effect of both Status and Warmth on perceived competence, and significant correlations between locus of attributions and likeliness to help, autonomy and dependency-oriented help, and emotions (admiration/envy/pity) and type of help. These findings underline the role of stereotypes and biases in influencing helping behavior, emphasizing the need for further investigations of helping mechanisms.Show less
Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on individuals’ physical and mental well-being, particularly affecting their sleep patterns. However, prospective research on the...Show moreIntroduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on individuals’ physical and mental well-being, particularly affecting their sleep patterns. However, prospective research on the specific effects of COVID-19 on sleep quality and rumination remains limited. The current study aims to fill this gap by investigating how the pandemic affects sleep quality and nighttime rumination in both adults and adolescents. It was hypothesised that COVID-19 would worsen sleep quality and increase nighttime rumination, particularly in adolescents. Methods: 101 participants (67 adults, 34 adolescents) were assessed using a within-betweensubjects design comparing two time periods (before and during COVID-19) across two age groups. Sleep quality was assessed daily by asking three questions that measured subjective sleep quality, sleep latency and wake after sleep onset. Nighttime rumination was quantified using self-reported rumination scores. Results: No significant differences in sleep quality or nighttime rumination were observed between the two periods for either age group. However, during the pandemic, adults experienced significantly worse sleep quality and increased nighttime rumination compared to adolescents. Additionally, nighttime rumination had a negative effect on sleep quality in both age groups. Conclusion: The study did not find statistically significant differences across time periods, but adults reported poorer sleep quality and higher levels of nighttime rumination during the pandemic compared to adolescents. These findings highlight the importance of further research to understand and address the psychological impact of global health crises in diverse populations.Show less
A novel relative density-based probability outlier detection algorithm, merging two previous techniques, is proposed. The resulting algorithm has a probabilistic score that is robust to low-density...Show moreA novel relative density-based probability outlier detection algorithm, merging two previous techniques, is proposed. The resulting algorithm has a probabilistic score that is robust to low-density pattern problems. The technique is extended to the context of proximity mapping, weighting the least squares loss function to mitigate the damaging effects of proximity outliers. Experiments on synthetic and real data show performance gains of the proposed algorithm for outlier correction as well as advantages in the interpretability of outlier scores in proximity mapping.Show less
This study explored the mediating role of adult attachment styles in the relationship between childhood bullying victimization (CBV) and subsequent mental health outcomes—specifically anxiety and...Show moreThis study explored the mediating role of adult attachment styles in the relationship between childhood bullying victimization (CBV) and subsequent mental health outcomes—specifically anxiety and depression—in young adulthood. Utilizing a cross-sectional design, the research analysed responses from the Caring University Initiative survey, which included a diverse student population across Dutch universities, totalling 2,974 participants. The mediation analysis indicated that certain adult attachment styles—secure, preoccupied, and fearful—significantly mediated the association between CBV and later-life anxiety and depression levels, while dismissive attachment did not show a significant mediating effect. The findings illustrated how CBV can disrupt the development of secure or promote the development of insecure attachments, potentially altering individuals’ perceptions of self-worth and trust. This disruption can diminish their effectiveness in seeking and utilizing social support, setting the stage for heightened stress responses and escalating symptoms of anxiety and depression, especially under life pressures such as those encountered in a university environment. The study underscores the critical influence of early-life attachment styles, which are shaped by childhood adversities, on adult psychological health. It advocates for the implementation of early, attachment-focused interventions designed to prevent the long-term progression of bullying-related trauma into significant mental health impairments in young adulthood.Show less
Neural networks are susceptible to minor distortions in their input, which can lead to errors they would not otherwise make. This susceptibility, termed as the network’s robustness, is a crucial...Show moreNeural networks are susceptible to minor distortions in their input, which can lead to errors they would not otherwise make. This susceptibility, termed as the network’s robustness, is a crucial aspect to evaluate. While several methods exist for measuring robustness, they usually suffer from interpretability issues and do not provide a statistical guarantee. In this work, we propose a novel robustness measure that addresses these short- comings by modeling the robustness as a probability distribution and mea- suring its 0.05 quantile. Additionally, previous work suggests the poten- tial modeling of robustness through a log-normal distribution. To eval- uate this hypothesis and its computational benefits, we introduce an es- timator that assumes the distribution is log-normal. A comparison with the standard parameter-free estimator reveals significantly improved com- putational efficiency with the parametrized approach. However, the log- normal assumption requires further research. The assumption is too strong and needs to be relaxed before the parametrized estimator can reliably be utilized.Show less
This thesis is an investigation into the ontological basis of pessimism. I develop a Nietzschean interpretive framework of pessimism, based on a distinction Nietzsche makes between two types of...Show moreThis thesis is an investigation into the ontological basis of pessimism. I develop a Nietzschean interpretive framework of pessimism, based on a distinction Nietzsche makes between two types of pessimism in The Gay Science 370: romantic and Dionysian pessimism. According to Nietzsche, this distinction is based on a dynamic articulated using the language of physiology. This dynamic is either expanding or degenerating. The thesis relates this distinction to Schopenhauer's and Nietzsche's notions of a 'world of appearance' to test if their ontology testifies to a romantic or Dionysian pessimism. Their ontologies are interpreted as either a transfiguration of romantic or Dionysian pessimism. I then develop a reading of Schopenhauer’s pessimistic philosophy. I argue that Schopenhauer’s notion of representation or appearance is central to his metaphysics. I then interpret his punctum pruriens of philosophy as a priori pessimism permeating the whole of Schopenhauer’s philosophy resulting in an ethics of renunciation. I then lay out Nietzsche’s critique of Schopenhauer in the Genealogy, based on the aforementioned physiological dynamic. In the last chapter, I investigate Nietzsche’s world of appearance, characterized as semblance or ‘Schein’. I relate this to Nietzsche’s aesthetics and art as a transfiguration of Dionysian pessimism. However, the question is whether Nietzsche’s philosophy itself is the transfiguration of Dionysian pessimism. I then explain how Nietzsche does this by means of a project of life affirmation through the notions of perspectivism and the will to power.Show less
Background. Parenting plays an important role in the development of adolescent’s emotion regulation (ER). Parental psychological control (PC) is negatively and parental autonomy support (AS) is...Show moreBackground. Parenting plays an important role in the development of adolescent’s emotion regulation (ER). Parental psychological control (PC) is negatively and parental autonomy support (AS) is positively linked to adolescent ER. Impaired ER has been linked to internalizing- and externalizing problems. Parenting is usually examined trough observation or trough self-report methods, but these methods are not interchangeable. Research question. Is adolescent-perceived or observed parenting more important for ER in adolescents, while controlling for depression? Method. In this cross-sectional and multi-method study, 35 depressed and 80 control adolescents (11-17 years) reported on perceived parental PC and AS using the Parental Bonding Inventory and their own behavioral ER using the Children's Emotion Management Scale. Parental PC and AS was observed and scored on the Problem-solving Interaction task. A multiple regression analysis was used. Results. Depressed adolescents showed significantly lower adaptive ER. There were no significant results for adolescent-perceived and observed PC and AS in relation to ER. For the interaction effect of group status with autonomy support, parental support, and ER, no significant results were found. A trend effect was found for the moderating effect between depression and adolescent-perceived PC. Conclusions. Depressed adolescents showed significantly lower adaptive ER, demonstrating the need for ER focused interventions. For teens in middle adolescence, PC and AS parenting did not have a significant effect on their ER. Lastly, when depressed adolescents experienced their parents as more psychologically controlling, they had more difficulty with their ER, highlighting the potential benefit of cognitive behavioral therapy.Show less
Abstract Introduction. Sickness Presenteeism (SP) describes the phenomenon of going to work despite being ill. As SP might be related to more burnout complaints and lower general health and is...Show moreAbstract Introduction. Sickness Presenteeism (SP) describes the phenomenon of going to work despite being ill. As SP might be related to more burnout complaints and lower general health and is associated with higher job demands and lower job resources, the influences of SP were investigated. The research contributed to previous research by targeting a general, diverse population and by exclusively focusing on health instead of motivational reasons for SP. Further, research that investigated the effects of SP as a moderator between working conditions and health factors was lacking. Thus, this study hypothesized, that higher job demands, and lower job resources increase burnout complaints and decrease general health and that this association is strengthened by SP. Methods. Altogether, 115 participants participated in this correlational study. Job resources and job demands were measured with the Demand-Control-Support questionnaire. A new SP variable was created for this research and tested for internal consistency. Burnout was measured with the Burnout-Assessment-Tool and general health with a one-item question. Two multiple regression analyses were conducted. The first analysis measured if higher job demands, and lower job resources were associated with (more) burnout complaints and how this association was moderated by SP. The second analysis measured the same association but with (lower) general health as an outcome variable. Results. SP did not moderate the relationship between job demands and burnout complaints (p=.20), job resources and burnout complaints (p=.70), job demands and general health (p=.49), and job resources and general health (p=.65). Consequently, all hypotheses were rejected. Job demands were directly related to more burnout complaints (p=.005). Discussion. This study found that high job demands were associated with higher burnout complaints in a general and diverse working population, highlighting the importance of reducing workloads. This study did not find significant SP interaction effects. Possible reasons could be sample size limitations and the statistical test choice. Network analyses might better measure a construct like SP, which includes many control factors and associations. According to this study, it seems that to increase general health and decrease burnout complaints, changing working conditions is more appropriate than addressing worker´s SP.Show less
Many problems in the world are social dilemmas wherein uncertainty whether collective efforts are effective is a threat to cooperation. This experiment investigates whether productivity uncertainty...Show moreMany problems in the world are social dilemmas wherein uncertainty whether collective efforts are effective is a threat to cooperation. This experiment investigates whether productivity uncertainty undermines cooperation because people who distrust institutions and are overconfident estimate a public good to be unproductive. We did this by presenting people with two public good games. Productivity uncertainty was manipulated by telling respondents in one of the games that all contributions could be wasted. Although the results show that productivity uncertainty undermines cooperation, no support was found for the before mentioned underlying mechanisms. Future research with different methodology could encounter other results.Show less
