An experimental study of simulated grant peer review: Gender differences and psychometric characteristics of proposal scores.

Peer review is a decisive factor in selecting research grant proposals for funding. The usefulness of peer review depends in part on the agreement of multiple reviewers' judgments of the same proposal, and on each reviewer's consistency in judging proposals. Peer reviewers are also instructed to disregard characteristics that are not among the evaluation criteria.

A global context for population mental health: Commentary on Dodge et al. (2024).

Dodge et al. (2024) outlined the gap between population mental health needs and the current capacity of the U.S.

Gender differences in peer reviewed grant applications, awards, and amounts: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Differential participation and success in grant applications may contribute to women's lesser representation in the sciences. This study's objective was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to address the question of gender differences in grant award acceptance rates and reapplication award acceptance rates (potential bias in peer review outcomes) and other grant outcomes.

Methods: The review was registered on PROSPERO (CRD42021232153) and conducted in accordance with PRISMA 2020 standards.

Depression trial results: A cross-sectional study of ClinicalTrials.gov.

Published clinical trials represent a subsample of the objective information needed to appraise treatments for depression. We characterize the extent of selective and delayed reporting in a systematic review (PROSPERO #CRD42020173606) of depression trial results registered on ClinicalTrials.gov.

Peer review: Risk and risk tolerance.

Peer review, commonly used in grant funding decisions, relies on scientists' ability to evaluate research proposals' quality. Such judgments are sometimes beyond reviewers' discriminatory power and could lead to a reliance on subjective biases, including preferences for lower risk, incremental projects. However, peer reviewers' risk tolerance has not been well studied.

Couples and COVID-19 vaccination: Frequency and reasons for discordance.

The purpose of this study was to determine the frequency of concordance and discordance in the COVID-19 vaccination status of intimate couples. Partners are well known to influence each other's health behaviors, but previous reports of couples' COVID-19 vaccination status were not found. Among 1305 respondents to an on-line survey who were living with their partners, couples' COVID-19 vaccination status was 15.

Transparency of results reporting for depression treatment studies in ClinicalTrials.gov: a cross-sectional study.

Objectives: Depression affects an estimated 7% of the adult population at an estimated cost of over US$200 billion/year in the USA. Complete, transparent reporting of clinical trial data facilitates valid estimates of treatment efficacy. In the USA, ClinicalTrials.

Grant Review Feedback: Appropriateness and Usefulness.

The primary goal of the peer review of research grant proposals is to evaluate their quality for the funding agency. An important secondary goal is to provide constructive feedback to applicants for their resubmissions. However, little is known about whether review feedback achieves this goal.

Grant reviewer perceptions of the quality, effectiveness, and influence of panel discussion.

Background: Funding agencies have long used panel discussion in the peer review of research grant proposals as a way to utilize a set of expertise and perspectives in making funding decisions. Little research has examined the quality of panel discussions and how effectively they are facilitated.

Methods: Here, we present a mixed-method analysis of data from a survey of reviewers focused on their perceptions of the quality, effectiveness, and influence of panel discussion from their last peer review experience.

Treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder and Secondary Effects on Somatization.

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is often accompanied by other diagnoses. Some comorbidities have received a good deal of attention, but others, including somatization, have not. As effective treatments for BPD are identified, the secondary effects of these treatments on BPD comorbidities are of clinical relevance.

The association of major life events with chronic fatigue.

Objective: Major life events have been associated with the onset of unexplained chronic fatigue (CF) and with variability in illness course. The purpose of this study was to characterize the associations of major life events with illness status over time.

Method: Sentinel measures of clinical status were collected four times over 18 months in a cohort of 99 persons with CF; participants also were interviewed regarding major life events, which were independently rated by observers.

Moderators of Outcome in Problem-Solving Therapy for Depression in Primary Care.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to conduct a secondary analysis of data from trials of problem-solving therapy in primary care (PST-PC) to examine differential outcomes by gender or race-ethnicity.

Methods: The participants were 352 patients with depression treated with PST-PC in multiple primary care sites in the United States.

Results: Women's depressive symptoms improved more over time than men's.

The Participation and Motivations of Grant Peer Reviewers: A Comprehensive Survey.

Scientific peer reviewers play an integral role in the grant selection process, yet very little has been reported on the levels of participation or the motivations of scientists to take part in peer review. The American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS) developed a comprehensive peer review survey that examined the motivations and levels of participation of grant reviewers. The survey was disseminated to 13,091 scientists in AIBS's proprietary database.

Negative life events and incident alcohol use disorders among ethnic minorities.

The association of negative life events (NLEs) with incident alcohol use disorders (AUDs) was examined among Blacks, Hispanics, and Whites in the second wave of the National Comorbidity Survey (NCS) among 3,679 participants without AUDs at the first wave. The number of past-year NLEs at NCS-2 was higher for Black than White participants, but the rates of incident AUDs did not differ by racial/ethnic group (14.2% among all participants).

Incident Chronic Spinal Pain and Depressive Disorders: Data From the National Comorbidity Survey.

This study examined pre-existing depression as a risk factor for the development of chronic spinal pain, and pre-existing chronic spinal pain as a risk factor for the development of depression. Data from the National Comorbidity Survey, a stratified sample of 5,001 participants evaluated in 1990 to 1992 (NCS-1) and again in 2000 to 2001 (NCS-2) were used to address these associations. Cox regression was used to estimate hazard ratios and time-to-incidence after NCS-1.

Longitudinal associations of lymphocyte subsets with clinical outcomes in chronic fatigue syndrome.

Background: Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is characterized by prolonged fatigue and other physical and neurocognitive symptoms. Some studies suggest that CFS is accompanied by disruptions in the number and function of various lymphocytes. However, it is not clear which lymphocytes might influence CFS symptoms.

Longitudinal outcomes associated with significant other responses to chronic fatigue and pain.

This study investigated significant others' behavior associated with fatigue, pain, and mental health outcomes among 68 individuals with chronic fatigue (43% also had fibromyalgia) over 18 months. More negative significant others' responses were associated with more pain, poorer physical and mental health, and more fatigue-related symptoms over time. More fibromyalgia tender points covaried with more solicitous significant others' responses over time.

Psychologists in Academic Administration: A Call to Action and Service.

Academic psychologists' backgrounds may prepare them for many aspects of academic administration such as: understanding and working with people; prioritizing others' needs and institutional needs; and managing projects and budgets, e.g., for research grants or training programs.

Reported Pain and Fatigue Behaviors Mediate the Relationship Between Catastrophizing and Perceptions of Solicitousness in Patients With Chronic Fatigue.

Unlabelled: Catastrophizing is associated with negative outcomes in chronic pain and illness. The communal coping model (CCM) and cognitive behavioral (CB) formulations provide differing accounts of the function of catastrophizing in these contexts. In the present study we examined predictions from CCM and CB theoretical models in a sample of 116 patients with chronic fatigue to test (1) whether patient-reported solicitous responses from significant others mediate the relationship of catastrophizing with patient-reported pain and fatigue behaviors, as predicted by the CCM; and (2) whether pain and fatigue behaviors mediate the relationship of catastrophizing with solicitous responses, consistent with a CB model.

Neurocognitive complaints and functional status among patients with chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to conduct a longitudinal examination of cognitive complaints and functional status in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) alone and those who also had fibromyalgia (CFS/FM).

Methods: A total of 93 patients from a tertiary care fatigue clinic were evaluated on four occasions, each 6 months apart. Each evaluation included a tender point assessment, and self-reported functional status and cognitive complaints.

The privilege and burden of peer review.

Objectives: Peer review is a core value and method of quality control in psychological research, academic psychology, and other disciplines, but little is known about the peer-reviewing behavior of ethnic minority reviewers in particular. The purpose of this study was to examine the self-identified ethnicity of those invited to peer review articles for 76 journals that utilized the American Psychological Association's Journals Back Office (JBO) system from 2003 to 2012. It was hypothesized that a modest increase in the ratio of requests for reviews from self-identified ethnic minority reviewers would be observed over time, that self-identified ethnic minority reviewers would be less likely to refuse a review request than those who do not self-identify as an ethnic minority, and finally that increases in reviewer burden would be evident in significant increases in declines to requests by all reviewers.

Salivary cortisol responses to household tasks among couples with unexplained chronic fatigue.

This study examined salivary cortisol levels in couples in which one member had unexplained chronic fatigue (CF). The couples completed questionnaires and seven household activities in a laboratory setting and provided salivary cortisol samples prior to and immediately after the activities, as well as again after completing additional questionnaires and debriefing. The couples rated their interactions as similar to those at home, suggesting ecological validity, and patients with CF experienced the activities as involving more exertion than did their partners.

Descriptors of breathlessness in children with persistent asthma.

Background: In adult patients, the consistent use of language to describe dyspnea enhances patient-provider communication and contributes to diagnostic and therapeutic decisions. The objective of this research was to determine whether pediatric patients similarly display consistency in the language used to describe "uncomfortable awareness of breathing."

Methods: One hundred children between the ages of 8 and 15 years with moderate to severe persistent asthma enrolled in an asthma education research program completed questionnaires regarding descriptors of asthma on each of two occasions.

Stress and alcohol use among soldiers assessed at mobilization and demobilization.

Excessive alcohol use may have negative consequences, including less force readiness among military personnel. The identification of variables associated with alcohol use may inform early intervention efforts to decrease negative consequences. This longitudinal prospective study examined the associations of demographic and stress variables with alcohol use among 876 soldiers that were mobilized and demobilized through an Army installation during a 9-month period in 2003.