-
Complex & Intelligent Systems 2022Swarm-based optimization algorithms have been popularly used these days for optimization of various real world problems but sometimes it becomes hard to estimate the...
Swarm-based optimization algorithms have been popularly used these days for optimization of various real world problems but sometimes it becomes hard to estimate the associated characteristics due to their stochastic nature. To ensure a steady performance of these techniques, it is essential to have knowledge about the range of variables, in which a particular algorithm always provides stable performance and performing stability analysis of an algorithm can help in providing some knowledge regarding the same. Many researchers have performed the stability analysis of several optimization algorithms and analyzed their behavior. Social Group Optimization (SGO) is a newly developed algorithm which has been proven to yield promising results when applied to many real world problems but in literature no work can be found on stability analysis of SGO. In this paper, Von Neumann stability analysis approach has been used for performing stability analysis of Social Group Optimization (SGO) to analyze the behavior of its algorithmic parameters and estimate the range in which they always give stable convergence. The results obtained have been supported by sufficient experimental analysis and simulated using eight benchmark function suite along with their shifted and rotated variations which prove that the algorithm performs better within the stable range and hence convergence is ensured.
PubMed: 35223377
DOI: 10.1007/s40747-022-00684-y -
The British Journal of Social Psychology Dec 2017Social group identification and socioeconomic deprivation have both been linked to self-reported depressive symptoms in general population samples; however, no study to...
Social group identification and socioeconomic deprivation have both been linked to self-reported depressive symptoms in general population samples; however, no study to date has explored the strength of the joint predictive value of these factors within a mental health population. The current study explored the impact of social group identifications and socioeconomic deprivation, together with important clinical and demographic variables, on psychological distress in a Scottish mental health sample. Participants (N = 976) were recruited from referrals to a computerized cognitive behavioural therapy (cCBT) programme in Scotland, 'Beating the Blues' (BtB) over a 25-month period. Participants completed the Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation Outcome Measure (CORE-OM) as a measure of psychological distress and three versions of the group identifications scale (GIS), one for each of three groups: family, community, and a social group of choice. Demographic information and clinical information were collected on commencing BtB. Higher numbers of group identifications were significantly associated with lower psychological distress. Additionally, increased socioeconomic deprivation was significantly associated with more severe psychological distress; however, interestingly, the association was not as strong as that of group identifications. Identifying with fewer social groups predicts more severe psychological symptom presentations, even more so than living in a greater state of socioeconomic deprivation.
Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; Female; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Primary Health Care; Scotland; Social Identification; Socioeconomic Factors; Stress, Psychological; Young Adult
PubMed: 28741679
DOI: 10.1111/bjso.12210 -
Current Opinion in Psychology Feb 2023Group history provides the experiential building blocks that shape social identity. When contemporary events are perceived as having created (or creating) a... (Review)
Review
Group history provides the experiential building blocks that shape social identity. When contemporary events are perceived as having created (or creating) a discontinuity with that history, collective nostalgia is likely to be elicited. Importantly, collective nostalgia is functional-it consolidates social identity, motivating group members to support a return to the group's "true" state of existence. However, no group is a monolith. Factions within a group may have differing opinions on what aspects of the past best represent core features of the ingroup. Variations in the content of the collective nostalgia can cleavage members' responses. Herein, we review research demonstrating the powerful role collective nostalgia and its contents play in intra- and intergroup relations, especially in the socio-political domain.
Topics: Humans; Social Identification; Emotions; Social Group
PubMed: 36603320
DOI: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2022.101542 -
British Journal of Preventive & Social... Dec 1977Morality rates for various social groups within the population of Finland were compared, using 179 919 death certificates for the period 1969-72. Morality was generally...
Morality rates for various social groups within the population of Finland were compared, using 179 919 death certificates for the period 1969-72. Morality was generally lowest in the highest social groups and highest among unskilled workers. Male mortality from coronary heart disease was also high among lower salaried employees. In the less developed area of northern Finland, female mortality from coronary heart disease and vascular lesions of the central nervous system was highest among the agricultural population. Cancer of the breast, cancer of the intestine, and suicides among women were apparently concentrated in the higher classes. Life table analysis showed that the social group differences in life expectancy at birth could be as great as 7.2 years. It is considered indispensable for a national health policy to improve on the recording of occupational data and to give regularly the occupation of the deceased when publishing mortality rates.
Topics: Female; Finland; Humans; Life Expectancy; Male; Mortality; Sex Factors; Social Class
PubMed: 597676
DOI: No ID Found -
Experimental and Clinical... Jun 2018The "social lubrication" function of alcohol during interpersonal interactions is well documented. However, less is known about the effects of alcohol consumption on...
The "social lubrication" function of alcohol during interpersonal interactions is well documented. However, less is known about the effects of alcohol consumption on group-level behavior. Empirical findings from social psychological literature suggest that individuals tend to favor those who are considered as members of their own social group. Not yet evaluated is how alcohol intoxication interacts with this group-level bias. Therefore, the current study examined experimentally the effects of intoxication on group bias. Ninety-four individuals (M = 20.18, SD = 2.36, 55 women, 39 men) were randomly assigned to consume an alcoholic (n = 48) or a placebo (n = 46) drink before completing manipulated allocation matrices, a task which measured the distribution of hypothetical monetary awards based on social groups. Results point to an interaction between drink condition and social group identification, whereby identification was significantly associated with in-group favoritism among intoxicated individuals only. Following alcohol consumption, participants with higher identification with their social group were more likely to demonstrate allocation strategies that favored their own group members. However, nonsignificant effects were observed for those in the placebo condition. The findings highlight how alcohol intoxication may facilitate group bias that results from social group identification. (PsycINFO Database Record
Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Alcohol Drinking; Alcoholic Intoxication; Ethanol; Female; Humans; Interpersonal Relations; Male; Peer Group; Random Allocation; Social Identification; Sports; Young Adult
PubMed: 29355350
DOI: 10.1037/pha0000186 -
BMJ Open Feb 2016Retirement constitutes a major life transition that poses significant challenges to health, with many retirees experiencing a precipitous decline in health status...
OBJECTIVES
Retirement constitutes a major life transition that poses significant challenges to health, with many retirees experiencing a precipitous decline in health status following retirement. We examine the extent to which membership in social groups following retirement determines quality of life and mortality.
DESIGN
The longitudinal impact of the number of social group memberships before and after the transition to retirement was assessed on retirees' quality of life and risk of death 6 years later.
SETTING
Nationally representative cohort study of older adults living in England.
PARTICIPANTS
Adults who underwent the transition to retirement (N=424). A matched control group (N=424) of participants who had comparable demographic and health characteristics at baseline but did not undergo the transition to retirement were also examined.
OUTCOME MEASURES
Analyses examined participants' quality of life and mortality during a period of 6 years.
RESULTS
Retirees who had two group memberships prior to retirement had a 2% risk of death in the first 6 years of retirement if they maintained membership in two groups, a 5% risk if they lost one group and a 12% risk if they lost both groups. Furthermore, for every group membership that participants lost in the year following retirement, their experienced quality of life 6 years later was approximately 10% lower. These relationships are robust when controlling for key sociodemographic variables (age, gender, relationship status and socioeconomic status prior to retirement). A comparison with a matched control group confirmed that these effects were specific to those undergoing the transition to retirement. The effect of social group memberships on mortality was comparable to that of physical exercise.
CONCLUSIONS
Theoretical implications for our understanding of the determinants of retiree quality of life and health, and practical implications for the support of people transitioning from a life of work to retirement are discussed.
Topics: Aged; Case-Control Studies; Cohort Studies; England; Female; Humans; Longitudinal Studies; Male; Middle Aged; Mortality, Premature; Protective Factors; Quality of Life; Retirement; Social Participation; Societies
PubMed: 26883239
DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2015-010164 -
PloS One 2013The social intelligence hypothesis suggests that living in large social networks was the primary selective pressure for the evolution of complex cognition in primates....
The social intelligence hypothesis suggests that living in large social networks was the primary selective pressure for the evolution of complex cognition in primates. This hypothesis is supported by comparative studies demonstrating a positive relationship between social group size and relative brain size across primates. However, the relationship between brain size and cognition remains equivocal. Moreover, there have been no experimental studies directly testing the association between group size and cognition across primates. We tested the social intelligence hypothesis by comparing 6 primate species (total N = 96) characterized by different group sizes on two cognitive tasks. Here, we show that a species' typical social group size predicts performance on cognitive measures of social cognition, but not a nonsocial measure of inhibitory control. We also show that a species' mean brain size (in absolute or relative terms) does not predict performance on either task in these species. These data provide evidence for a relationship between group size and social cognition in primates, and reveal the potential for cognitive evolution without concomitant changes in brain size. Furthermore our results underscore the need for more empirical studies of animal cognition, which have the power to reveal species differences in cognition not detectable by proxy variables, such as brain size.
Topics: Animals; Behavior, Animal; Cognition; Competitive Behavior; Female; Interpersonal Relations; Lemur; Male; Social Behavior
PubMed: 23840450
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0066359 -
Neuron Aug 2020Social group dynamics are highly complex. In this issue of Neuron, Anpilov et al. use a novel wireless optogenetic device to demonstrate that the repeated stimulation...
Social group dynamics are highly complex. In this issue of Neuron, Anpilov et al. use a novel wireless optogenetic device to demonstrate that the repeated stimulation of oxytocin neurons modulates pro-social and agonistic behaviors in a time- and context-dependent manner.
Topics: Agonistic Behavior; Neurons; Optogenetics; Oxytocin; Social Behavior
PubMed: 32818470
DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2020.07.027 -
PloS One 2017Living closely with others can provide a myriad of fitness benefits, from shared territory defense to co-operative resource acquisition. Costs of social aggregation are...
The effect of social group size on feather corticosterone in the co-operatively breeding Smooth-billed Ani (Crotophaga ani): An assay validation and analysis of extreme social living.
Living closely with others can provide a myriad of fitness benefits, from shared territory defense to co-operative resource acquisition. Costs of social aggregation are not absent, however, and likely influence optimal and observed groups' sizes in a social species. Here, we explored optimal group size in a joint-nesting cuckoo species (the Smooth-billed Ani, Crotophaga ani) using endocrine markers of stress physiology (corticosterone, or CORT). Smooth-billed Anis exhibit intense reproductive competition that is exacerbated in atypically large groups. We therefore hypothesized that intra-group competition (measured by social group size) mediates the desirability and physiological cost of social group membership in this species. To test this hypothesis, we captured 47 adult Smooth-billed Anis (31 males, 16 females) during the breeding seasons of 2012-2014 in south-western Puerto Rico, and documented social group sizes. Tail feathers were sampled and used to quantify CORT (pg/mg) in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) (n = 50). Our analyses show significant differences in feather-CORT of adults between categorical group sizes, with individuals from atypically large social groups (≥ x + 1SD) having highest mean concentrations (33.319 pg/mg), and individuals from atypically small social groups (≤ x - 1SD) having lowest mean concentrations (8.969 pg/mg). Whether reproductive competition or effort is responsible for elevated CORT in atypically large social groups, however, remains unclear. Our results suggest that living in atypically large groups is physiologically expensive and may represent an evolutionarily unstable strategy. To our knowledge, this is the first study to explore a correlation between stress physiology and group size in a joint-nesting species.
Topics: Animals; Birds; Breeding; Cooperative Behavior; Corticosterone; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; Feathers; Female; Male; Molting; Nesting Behavior; Population Density; Puerto Rico; Reproduction; Seasons; Social Behavior
PubMed: 28355280
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0174650 -
PloS One 2023The common cause of anemia in the general population is iron deficiency. Anemia is adversely affecting women of reproductive age and child health which in turn results...
BACKGROUND
The common cause of anemia in the general population is iron deficiency. Anemia is adversely affecting women of reproductive age and child health which in turn results in increased morbidity and maternal death, and also hamper social-economic growth. Reproductive women are more prone to anemia due to inadequate dietary intake and iron loss during menstruation and pregnancy.
OBJECTIVES
This study examined the level and trend of anemia prevalence among the socially disadvantaged group (SC&ST, OBC) of women as compared to the other women (general) and identified the main responsible factors behind this.
DATA AND METHODS
The data for this analysis has been taken from three rounds of National Family Health Survey (NFHS) conducted during 2005-2006 (NFHS 3), 2015-16 (NFHS 4) and 2019-21 (NFHS 5). Univariate and bivariate analyses were used to assess the level of anemia among reproductive age group women of different social groups. The regression model represents the relative risk of different confounding factors on the occurrence of anemia. GIS technique used for graphical representation of anemia prevalence rate among different social groups of women in different states of India.
RESULT
In India more than 15 states belong to the high prevalence (>%55) of anemia among socially backward groups in 2019-21. The anemia prevalence was high (>55%) in all social groups (SC & ST, OBC, general) observed in 7 states in NFHS-3, 4 in NFHS-4 and 11 states in NFHS-5. The overall result reveals that the SC&ST women were more prone to any anemia than OBC and general women and the prevalence rate slightly increased from 2005-06 to 2019-21. Among all variables, economic status dominantly controls the anemia level in all social groups. Anemia prevalence of the poor and poorest group of general women were much worse than the women of richer and richest groups of SC&ST, OBC. The odds of women having anemia were lower among higher educated and urban women as compared to the non educated and rural women, irrespective of social group. The prevalence of anemia decreases with increased age of women and increases with the number of child bearing. All differences were statistically significant.
CONCLUSIONS
The problem of iron deficiency remains a major issue in India, where the majority of the states (eastern, north-eastern and central) suffer from high anemia prevalence rate and it increases over time. It is observed that multiple socio-demographic factors ranging from poor economic and educational status, rural residence to higher childbearing of women are responsible for predicting anemia levels among the social groups of women in India. To eradicate this problem India should improve women's overall nutrition status and their income. Meanwhile, GOI should be more focused on the existing policies related to anemia and on their actual implementation on grassroots level.
Topics: Pregnancy; Humans; Female; Cross-Sectional Studies; Social Group; Prevalence; Anemia; India; Iron Deficiencies
PubMed: 36730352
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0281015