Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Bijou Yang.
The issue of whether it is more useful to focus on societal interventions to prevent suicide or individual-centered approaches is discussed. The advantages and drawbacks of each approach are explored.
In a replication study, purchasing books online by 137 state college students was predicted by computer/Internet skills.
In a sample of 82 undergraduates, the personality dimension of novelty seeking, which has been hypothesized to be influenced by levels of dopamine in the central nervous system, was associated with attitudes regarding money.
In four samples of adults, individual income was negatively associated with a measure of prefrontal cortex dysfunction even after implementing controls for age, sex, and education. The small association was stronger for men than for women. These results provide support for a neuroeconomic approach to the study of micro-economic variables.
American university students owned more than twice as many credit cards as British university students. However, scores on a credit card attitude scale predicted the number of cards owned by respondents in both countries.
A digital access index was associated with measures of national character (such as extraversion and individualism) for 18 industrialized nations, but statistical controls for gross domestic product per capita eliminated these associations.
Buying and selling items on eBay was predicted in a sample of 386 undergraduate students from two institutions by computer or Internet skills, year and, for buying items on eBay, sex.
This Commentary suggests that it is possible, from an economic perspective, that any individual artist/celebrity suicide may be of net benefit to society. Sales of the artist's products and associated merchandise may increase after the suicide, and people, including those who were not even born at the time of the suicide, may derive value from its iconic rectification, not to mention the higher value they derive from some private goods. A case study of Kurt Cobain is given to illustrate this phenomenon.
This article reviews simple epidemiological data on completed suicide rates in different nations of the world, the results of time-series studies of suicide in nations, and the results of regional correlates of suicide rates within nations. It is argued that it is important to conduct comparable sociological studies in samples of nations so that the general trends and deviations from these trends can be observed and efforts made to explain these phenomena.
In a sample of 139 community residents, credit card ownership was associated with age, sex, income, attitudes toward credit cards and toward money, and scores on a verbal measure of prefrontal cortical dysfunction, supporting a neuroeconomic approach to economic decision-making.
A 6-item measure of computer anxiety was devised and showed good reliability and validity in both American and English samples so it could be useful in survey research when a brief measure of computer anxiety is needed.
In a sample of 352 students, correlates of credit card ownership differed by sex. For both men and women, credit card ownership was predicted by their affective attitude toward credit cards. However, whereas for men concern with money as a tactic for gaining power predicted credit card ownership, for women feelings of insecurity about having sufficient money and having a conservative approach to money predicted credit card ownership.
In a sample of 139 community residents, three of the four subscales from the Yamauchi and Templer Money Attitude Scale were replicated.
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Credit card use often involves a disadvantageous allocation of finances because they allow for spending beyond means and buying on impulse. Accordingly they are associated with increased bankruptcy, anxiety, stress, and health problems. Mounting evidence from functional neuroimaging and clinical studies implicates prefrontal-subcortical systems in processing financial information. This study examined the relationship of credit card debt and executive functions using the Frontal System Behavior Scale (FRSBE). After removing the influences of demographic variables (age, sex, education, and income), credit card debt was associated with the Executive Dysfunction scale, but not the Apathy or Disinhibition scales. This suggests that processes of conceptualizing and organizing finances are most relevant to credit card debt, and implicates dorsolateral prefrontal dysfunction.
A survey of 11 positive features and 10 discouraging features of online shopping was carried out on 180 students and identified certain behavioral patterns for online shoppers versus non-shoppers. It was found that online shoppers have consistently stronger positive feelings about online shopping than do non-shoppers. On the other hand, non-shoppers have more negative feelings about online shopping than do shoppers, but not consistently so. Online shoppers are aware of some of the discouraging features of online shopping, but these features do not deter them from shopping online. The implication for marketers is that they should focus on making the experience of online shopping more accommodating and more user-friendly since the positive features of online shopping ("convenience" and "efficiency") appear to be more important than the negative features ("effort/impersonality").
In a sample of 235 community residents, the Frontal Systems Behavior Scale which measures frontal system dysfunction was negatively associated with income and positively associated with accepting smaller immediate rewards rather than larger delayed rewards.
In a study of 100 students, no associations were found between a measure of the prefrontal system dysfunction personality with credit card use and attitudes.