Trait anxiety and the neural efficiency of manipulation in working memory

The present study investigates the effects of trait anxiety on the neural efficiency of working memory component functions (manipulation vs. maintenance) in the absence of threat-related stimuli. For the manipulation of affectively neutral verbal information held in working memory, high- and low-anxious individuals (N = 46) did not differ in their behavioral performance, yet trait anxiety was positively related to the neural effort expended on task processing, as measured by BOLD signal changes in fMRI. Higher levels of anxiety were associated with stronger activation in two regions implicated in the goal-directed control of attention--that is, right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and left inferior frontal sulcus--and with stronger deactivation in a region assigned to the brain's default-mode network--that is, rostral-ventral anterior cingulate cortex. Furthermore, anxiety was associated with a stronger functional coupling of right DLPFC with ventrolateral prefrontal cortex. We interpret our findings as reflecting reduced processing efficiency in high-anxious individuals and point out the need to consider measures of functional integration in addition to measures of regional activation strength when investigating individual differences in neural efficiency. With respect to the functions of working memory, we conclude that anxiety specifically impairs the processing efficiency of (control-demanding) manipulation processes (as opposed to mere maintenance). Notably, this study contributes to an accumulating body of evidence showing that anxiety also affects cognitive processing in the absence of threat-related stimuli.     

Personality integration: A synthesis of the parts and wholes of individuality theory

Individuality theory views the total psychological system or personality as an organized complexity which is partitioned into six major systems—sensory, motor, cognition, affect, value, and style. Each of these systems is, in turn, describable in terms of its subsystems and their components. Individuality is captured via the concept of multivariate personality type, which includes both profile and temporal characteristics. Organism-environment interactions are handled via the basic system circuit. This circuit involves an information input from the environment, a norm against which inputs are compared, and outputs which feed back into the external environment. Normative match refers to the degree of alignment between a specifiable norm (i.e., a psychological construction such as a goal or a purpose) and the environmental input. We refer to norm-input matches as assimilation. In the case of mismatches, accommodation is required via feedback mechanisms. Whereas normative matching is focused on external interactions between the organism and the environment, template matching is focused on internal processes of the psychological suprasystem. Thus, template matching refers to the degree of alignment between the profile and temporal aspects of a specifiable situation and personality type. Template matching involves specifying the details of central processing—the integrative role of the style and value systems, the transformation processing of the cognitive and affective systems, and the coding role of the sensory and motor systems. Suprasystem functioning involves both internal (i.e., template matching) and external (i.e., normative matching) processing simultaneously. Thus, molar psychological constructions, such as worldview and life-style, are the products or outcomes of the integrative processing of the style-cognitive and value-affective systems respectively. When suprasystem norms are functioning assimilatively we are describing periods of personality stability. When suprasystem norms are functioning accommodatively we are describing periods of personality change. The most encompassing indicator of personality integration at a given moment     

A neural theory of binocular rivalry

When the two eyes view discrepant monocular stimuli, stable single vision gives way to alternating periods of monocular dominance; this is the well-known but little understood phenomenon of binocular rivalry. This article develops a neural theory of binocular rivalry that treats the phenomenon as the default outcome when binocular correspondence cannot be established. The theory posits the existence of monocular and binocular neurons arrayed within a functional processing module, with monocular neurons playing a crucial role in signaling the stimulus conditions instigating rivalry and generating inhibitory signals to implement suppression. Suppression is conceived as a local process happening in parallel over the entire cortical representation of the binocular visual field. The strength of inhibition causing suppression is related to the size of the pool of monocular neurons innervated by the suppressed eye, and the duration of a suppression phase is attributed to the strength of excitation generated by the suppressed stimulus. The theory is compared with three other contemporary theories of binocular rivalry. The article closes with a discussion of some of the unresolved problems related to the theory.     

Personality prototypes based on dimensions of the revised reinforcement sensitivity theory among prisoners and non-prisoners

The aims of this study are to identify personality types based on the constructs of the revised reinforcement sensitivity theory, and to examine the relations between personality types, violent behavior and attitudes toward violence in prison and non-prison samples. The study was conducted on a sample of 716 males (including 107 prison inmates). The clusters named approaching, avoidant and controlled were extracted. Cluster solutions obtained in prison and non-prison samples showed great similarity. Differences between clusters with regard to violent behaviors and attitudes toward violence were examined in each of the sub-samples separately. In the non-prison sample, the clusters differ with regard to all indicators of violence, except for violence toward parents, while in the prison sample the clusters do not differ with regard to violence toward partner and unknown people. In prison sample, participants with multiple prison sentences are most frequent in the approaching cluster.     

Personality and reciprocal inhibition theory: The link between aggression and sexual reactivity

The study tries to relate two approaches often discussed in the context of aggression and violence in combination with sexual arousal, the reciprocal inhibition theory (Wolpe, 1958) and an approach from personality psychology which emphasizes the psychoticism dimension (P) according to Eysenck and Eysenck (1975) as a mediator of violent sexual offence. The effects of preexposure to a violent vs. neutral movie on sexual reactivity to violent and non-violent sexual stimuli (audioplays and pictures) was studied in a male student population (N=64). Sexual reactivity was measured by self-ratings, inspection time and electrodermal activity. Results could not confirm reciprocal inhibition theory but revealed that sexual reactivity for subjects scoring high vs. low on the psychoticism/aggressiveness dimension were differently affected by preexposure to violence.     

Affective personality differences in neural processing efficiency confirmed using fMRI

To test for a relation between individual differences in personality and neural-processing efficiency, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to assess brain activity within regions associated with cognitive control during a demanding working memory task. Fifty-three participants completed both the self-report behavioral inhibition sensitivity (BIS) and behavioral approach sensitivity (BAS) personality scales and a standard measure of fluid intelligence (Raven’s Advanced Progressive Matrices). They were then scanned as they performed a three-back working memory task. A mixed blocked/ event-related fMRI design enabled us to identify both sustained and transient neural activity. Higher BAS was negatively related to event-related activity in the dorsal anterior cingulate, the lateral prefrontal cortex, and parietal areas in regions of interest identified in previous work. These relationships were not explained by differences in either behavioral performance or fluid intelligence, consistent with greater neural efficiency. The results reveal the high specificity of the relationships among personality, cognition, and brain activity. The data confirm that affective dimensions of personality are independent of intelligence, yet also suggest that they might be interrelated in subtle ways, because they modulate activity in overlapping brain regions that appear to be critical for task performance.     

A neural theory of visual attention: bridging cognition and neurophysiology

A neural theory of visual attention (NTVA) is presented. NTVA is a neural interpretation of C. Bundesen's (1990) theory of visual attention (TVA). In NTVA, visual processing capacity is distributed across stimuli by dynamic remapping of receptive fields of cortical cells such that more processing resources (cells) are devoted to behaviorally important objects than to less important ones. By use of the same basic equations used in TVA, NTVA accounts for a wide range of known attentional effects in human performance (reaction times and error rates) and a wide range of effects observed in firing rates of single cells in the primate visual system. NTVA provides a mathematical framework to unify the 2 fields of research--formulas bridging cognition and neurophysiology.     

Applicant–Employee Fit in Personality: Testing predictions from similarity‐attraction theory and trait activation theory

We extend prior research by examining whether, and how, applicant–employee fit in the personality traits of conscientiousness, agreeableness, and extraversion affect organizational attractiveness. We test hypotheses based on similarity‐attraction theory and trait activation theory. Results from two studies indicate that applicants high in valued traits are more attracted to organizations when employees are more similar to them in those personality traits, whereas employees’ trait levels do not affect attraction for applicants low in valued traits. The effects of objective applicant–employee fit in personality on attractiveness were mediated by perceived applicant–employee fit. The pattern of the observed applicant–employee fit interactions was best predicted by trait activation theory and, thus, provide an important extension to similarity‐attraction theory.     

Personality and social cognitive influences on exercise behavior: adding the activity trait to the theory of planned behavior

Objectives: To replicate findings for a direct effect of the activity personality trait on exercise behavior while controlling for the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), and to investigate a possible moderating effect for gender.Method: Undergraduate students (N=298) completed measures of the TPB, activity trait, and a two-week follow-up of exercise behavior.Results: The activity trait had a significant (p<0.01) direct effect on both exercise intention and behavior while controlling for the TPB, with no moderating effect of gender (p>0.05).Conclusions: The activity trait predicts exercise intention and behavior independent of social cognition even over a short two week period. The TPB may need to broaden its measurement domain in order to mediate the effect of personality on behavior. Moreover, exercise practitioners may need to consider personality when developing interventions.     

从人际关系看人格--认知-情感系统理论的视角

人格的认知—情感系统理论(cognitive-affective system theory of personality,简称CAPS)被视为是与大五人格理论齐名的一种人格理论。该文拟从个体外部的人际关系层面来阐述该理论,以加深对理论的理解。然后,又从CAPS与其它人际关系理论的契合说明该理论是一种整合性的人格理论。最后,指出了CAPS的优点和局限性,并由此对人格研究的未来发展方向进行了探讨。     

Personality and counterproductive work behaviour: Using conservation of resources theory to narrow the profile of deviant employees

We leverage conservation of resources (COR) theory to explain how conscientiousness and emotional stability (ES) are associated with resource management strategies that may reflect instrumentally driven counterproductive work behaviour (CWB). Specifically, we investigated how the relationship between conscientiousness and CWB varies as a function of the level of available personal (i.e., ES) and organizationally provided (i.e., experienced job constraints) resources. Results from two surveys administered 4 weeks apart to US employees indicate that the negative relationship between conscientiousness and CWB is positive among employees who are low in ES.