Michael Gibertini

Air Force Pilot Personality: Hard Data on the "Right Stuff"

Three-hundred and fifty Air Force pilots undergoing Undergraduate Pilot Training were administered the Personality Research Form (PRF) and the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (MCMI) within the first four weeks of training. Pilots were significantly different from non-flying college students on several PRF scales. Cluster analyses indicated that three very distinct personality types exist in the data. These types were supported through multiple cross-validations. Descriptions of pilot personality types are given in terms of PRF and MCMI personality variables. The accuracy of prevailing stereotypes is examined in light of the data. Implications for future research and pilot selection criteria are discussed.

Legionella pneumophila-Induced Visual Learning Impairment Reversed by Anti-Interleukin-1β

Abstract Infecting mice with the opportunistic intracellular pathogen Legionella pneumophila markedly inhibited place learning of infected C57BL/6 mice as determined by the Morris water maze test. Mice infected with L. pneumophila evinced much less ability to learn the position of a hidden platform than did normal noninfected mice, which quickly learned the location of the hidden platform and escaped from the cool water of the pool with increasing efficiency. However, infected mice treated with anti-interleukin-1 (anti-IL-1) neutralizing antibody learned the task with about the same efficiency as the controls. When the animals were tested 1 week after learning, control animals remembered the task well and were able to escape with near maximal efficacy. On the other hand, L. pneumophila-infected mice performed as poorly after the 1 week rest as during the training period, indicating that infection blocked learning and not merely performance. Mice infected with L. pneumophila and given the antibody treatment were found to be indistinguishable from controls in that they remembered the task and escaped with good efficiency. Thus, the results of this study suggest that the pro-inflammatory cytokine, IL-1β, is involved, at least partly, in the attenuation of spatial navigational learning in mice infected acutely with a sublethal concentration of L. pneumophila. These results, therefore, suggest that cognitive impairment of L. pneumophila-infected mice may be related to the cytokine IL-1β and, furthermore, that cytokines may be related to learning and memory changes experienced by individuals suffering acute bacterial infections.

Psychosocial aspects of melanoma

Seventy-five patients with melanoma were surveyed for recent history of major stress, coping styles, and psychiatric disturbance. Recurrence of disease was strongly related to biological variables (stage and Breslow depths) but not to psychological measures. Major life stress was not related to stage, Breslow, Clark level, or estimates of lymphocytic infiltration of tumor. Coping styles were paradoxically related to major life stress such that history of major stresses was associated with greater confrontation of the melanoma diagnosis, greater will to fight the disease, and less avoidance of its frightening aspects. Experience with fewer major life stresses was associated with a defeatist attitude characterized by an expectation of a poor prognosis and little control over outcomes. More than 50% of the sample had experienced at least one major life stress in the past 5 years. This figure is consistent with prior work and indicative of a higher than normal rate of major life stress in the years before diagnosis.

Factor invariance of the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory

Several factor analyses of the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (MCMI) have resulted in very similar solutions. Interpretation of this consistency is hampered by the fact that the 20 scales of the inventory share items. Overlapping items cause the scales to be linearly dependent and may create structure in the interscale correlation matrix which is separate from the subject response patterns. A factor analysis was performed on the matrix of item-overlap coefficients which describes the underlying artifactual structure of the instrument. Data from two new subject samples were factor analyzed and compared to previously published studies. Similarity coefficients among factors across studies were calculated.

Impact of a hospital smoking ban: changes in tobacco use and employee attitudes.

The authors investigated the impact of a complete smoking ban on 349 employees of a cancer treatment center. A questionnaire administered approximately 4 months after the ban was initiated queried smokers on the impact of the ban on their smoking habits, their experience of withdrawal symptoms during the workday, and changes in work habits. A separate questionnaire asked nonsmokers about changes in the work environment. Results showed that few smokers quit while a majority decreased their consumption. Withdrawal symptoms were a problem in less than half the smokers, but those reporting signs of physical dependency on nicotine tended to smoke more before and after work and reported negative changes in work performance. Nonsmokers in general reported positive effects on the work environment.

Prebiopsy assessment of patients with suspected head and neck cancer

Sixty-three patients waiting for a diagnostic evaluation for suspected head and neck cancer were evaluated using standardized psychometric instruments and a clinical interview. Patients with both malignant and benign lesions were found to have significant anxiety and depression. Compared with patients who had benign lesions, those with carcinomas reported less concomitant stress; however, alcohol use was equally prevalent in both groups. The authors discuss the results in the context of theories about cancerprone personalities, the characteristics of the patient population, and psychometric testing. The authors recommend early screening of patients with head and neck cancer for psychopathology.

IL-1β and TNFα modulate δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol-induced catalepsy in mice

Abstract The role of the proinflammatory cytokines interleukin-lα (IL-lα), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNFα) in THC-induced catalepsy in mice was examined. Recombinant IL-1β (400 ng/mouse, IV) and TNFα (500 ng/mouse, IV) were effective in potentiating the cataleptic effect of low-dose THC (10 μg/mouse, IV). Recombinant IL-1α and IL-6 did not potentiate catalepsy at any dose tested. Anti-IL-1β and anti-TNFα antibodies were effective in attenuating high-dose (75 μg/ mouse) THC-induced catalepsy. Antibodies to IL-1α and IL-6 had no effect on catalepsy. Early onset catalepsy (10 min postinjection) was potentiated by exogenous recombinant IL-1β and TNFα but only later catalepsy (2 h postinjection) was attenuated by antibodies to endogenous IL-1β or TNFα. This divergence of the cytokine effect suggests that these substances regulate, by different mechanisms, the early and late THC-induced cataleptic response.

Factor-based special scales for the MCMI

Factor analytic work with the Million Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (MCMI) has shown a remarkably stable factor structure. The eight Basic Personality scales have a three-factor structure: Aloof/Social, Submissive/Aggressive, and Labile/Restrained. These dimensions appear to be the same as those suggested by the DSM-III-R advisory committee on personality disorders. The MCMI as a whole has a five-factor structure: Detached, Submissive, Suspicious, High Social Energy, and General Distress. The present work operationalizes these two sets of factors into scales for use by clinicians and researchers. The resultant scales show excellent reliabilities across three subject samples (N = 253, N = 185, N = 184) and demonstrate appropriate convergent and divergent validity estimates against the MCMI itself.

The Personality Adjective Inventory: Construction, Reliability, and Validity:

A new test of personality based on Murrays need-press theory and following the lead of the Personality Research Form (PRF) was developed. The construction and validation of the Personality Adjective Inventory (PAI) is described. The instrument is composed of 100 adjectives which measure 20 traits. A Likert response format is used to increase reliability. Overall, the inventory showed excellent psychometric properties across several measures of reliability, stability, and validity. It compares favorably to other adjective inventories as well as to the PRF. Strengths, weaknesses and possible uses of the PAI were discussed.