Centrifugal acceleration to 3Gz is related to increased release of stress hormones and decreased mood in men and women

It has been suggested that the central and peripheral neural processes (CPNP) are affected by gravitational changes. Based on the previous experiments during parabolic flights, central and peripheral changes may not only be due to the changed gravitational forces but also due to neuroendocrine reactions related to the psycho-physiological consequences of gravitational changes. The present study focuses on the interaction of neuroendocrine changes and the physical and mental states after acceleration to three-time terrestrial gravity (3Gz). Eleven participants (29.4+/-5.1 [SD] years (male (n=8): 30+/-5.1 years; female (n=3): 27.7+/-2.1 years) underwent a 15 min acceleration to 3Gz in a human centrifuge. Before and after the acceleration to 3Gz circulating stress hormone concentrations (cortisol, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), prolactin, epinephrine, norepinephrine) and perceived physical and mental states were recorded. A second control group of 11 participants underwent the same testing procedure in a laboratory session. Serum cortisol concentration during exposure to the centrifugal acceleration increased by 70%, plasma concentration of ACTH increased threefold, prolactin twofold, epinephrine by 70% and norepinephrine by 45%, whereas the perceived physical well-being decreased. These findings demonstrate that psycho-physiological changes have to be regarded as a relevant factor for the changes in CPNP during phases of hypergravity exposure.     

Variation in the serotonin transporter gene modulates selective attention to threat

The 5-HTTLPR is an insertion/deletion polymorphism in the promoter region of the serotonin transporter gene. Prior research has revealed associations between the short-allele variant of this polymorphism, enhanced self-reported negative emotionality, and hypersensitivity of fear relevant neural circuits. In a sample of 50 healthy women we examined the role of 5-HTTLPR for cognitive-affective processing of phylogenetical fear-relevant stimuli (spiders) in a dot probe task. In contrast to homozygote long-allele carriers (ll), participants carrying at least 1 short allele (ss and sl) selectively shifted attention toward pictures of spiders, when these were presented for a duration of 2,000 ms. These results argue for an involvement of 5-HTTLPR in cognitive processing of threatening stimuli and thus, underpin its general role for individual differences in negative affect.     

The influence of theta transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) on working memory storage and processing functions

The study aimed to explore the role of the fronto-parietal brain network in working memory function—in temporary storage and manipulation of information. In a single blind sham controlled experiment 36 respondents solved different working memory tasks after theta transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) was applied to left frontal, left parietal and right parietal areas. Both verum tACS protocols stimulating parietal brain areas (target electrodes positioned at location P3, or P4) had a positive effect on WM storage capacity as compared with sham tACS, whereas no such influence was observed for the stimulation of the left frontal area (target electrode positioned at location F3). A second finding was that left parietal theta tACS had a more pronounced influence on backward recall than on forward recall, which was not related to task content (spatial or verbal). The influence of theta tACS on WM executive processes was most pronounced for right parietal stimulation. The results are discussed in the broad theoretical framework of the multicomponent model of working memory.     

Multiple regression analyses in artificial-grammar learning: the importance of control groups

In artificial-grammar learning, it is crucial to ensure that above-chance performance in the test stage is due to learning in the training stage but not due to judgemental biases. Here we argue that multiple regression analysis can be successfully combined with the use of control groups to assess whether participants were able to transfer knowledge acquired during training when making judgements about test stimuli. We compared the regression weights of judgements in a transfer condition (training and test strings were constructed by the same grammar but with different letters) with those in a control condition. Predictors were identical in both conditions-judgements of control participants were treated as if they were based on knowledge gained in a standard training stage. The results of this experiment as well as reanalyses of a former study support the usefulness of our approach.     

When one cue is not enough: combining fast and frugal heuristics with compound cue processing

One-reason decision-making heuristics as proposed by Gigerenzer, Todd, and the ABC Research Group (1999) have been shown to perform accurately. However, such strategies cannot deal with compound cues. We propose the Take The Best Configural Cue (TTB-Configural) as a fast and frugal heuristic that processes compound cues. In a series of three experiments, we analysed whether participants used this heuristic when making cue-based inferences on which of two alternatives had a higher criterion value. In two of the experiments, two cues were amalgamated into a valid compound cue by applying the AND or the OR logical rule, respectively. In the third experiment, there was no valid compound cue. Within each experiment, we also manipulated causal mental models through instructions. In the configural causal model, cues were said to act through the same causal mechanism. In the elemental causal model, cues were said to act through different causal mechanisms. In the neutral causal model, the causal mechanism was not specified. When a highly valid compound existed, and participants had a configural causal model, for the majority of them the strategy that could best account for their choices was TTB-Configural. Otherwise, the strategy that best predicted their choices was the Take The Best (TTB) heuristic.     

Does causal knowledge help us be faster and more frugal in our decisions?

One challenge that has to be addressed by the fast and frugal heuristics program is how people manage to select, from the abundance of cues that exist in the environment, those to rely on when making decisions. We hypothesize that causal knowledge helps people target particular cues and estimate their validities. This hypothesis was tested in three experiments. Results show that when causal information about some cues was available (Experiment 1), participants preferred to search for these cues first and to base their decisions on them. When allowed to learn cue validities in addition to causal information (Experiment 2), participants also became more frugal (i.e., they searched fewer of the available cues), made more accurate decisions, and were more precise in estimating cue validities than was a control group that did not receive causal information. These results can be attributed to the causal relation between the cues and the criterion, rather than to greater saliency of the causal cues (Experiment 3). Overall, our results support the hypothesis that causal knowledge aids in the learning of cue validities and is treated as a meta-cue for identifying highly valid cues.     

Understanding Workaholics' Motivations: A Self‐Determination Perspective

In order to explain the diverging well‐being outcomes of workaholism, this study aimed to examine the motivational orientations that may fuel the two main components of workaholism (i.e. working excessively and working compulsively). Drawings on Self‐Determination Theory, both autonomous and controlled motivation were suggested to drive excessive work, which therefore was expected to relate positively to both well‐being (i.e. vigor) and ill‐health (i.e. exhaustion). Compulsive work, in contrast, was hypothesised to originate exclusively out of controlled motivation and therefore to only associate positively with ill‐being. Structural equation modeling in a heterogeneous sample of Belgian white‐collar workers (N= 370) confirmed that autonomous motivation associated positively with excessive work, which then related positively to vigor. Controlled motivation correlated positively with compulsive work, which therefore related positively with exhaustion. The hypothesised path from controlled motivation to exhaustion through excessive work was not corroborated. In general, the findings suggest that primarily compulsive work yields associations with ill‐being, since it may stem from a qualitatively inferior type of motivation.     

America—Still in the Hero's Grip

Although the United States is clearly still reeling from its current and recent exported wars, it has never gotten close enough to fully witness their actual horror. As a result, the nation's profound identification with the archetypes of the warrior and hero has never undergone a corrective experience. The country's one-sided myth of its own exceptionalism and goodness has created not only an unattainable image to live up to, but also its flip side—a very repressed and ignored shadow, which is liable to pop up in highly unregulated forms. The psychic split this creates is now being played out in a deeply divided nation and the seemingly sudden emergence of a president who carries all the shadow aspects of the hero archetype. The United States is certainly not the only nation with a narrative elevating itself above all others—or that has ended up enthroning its own shadow. But because of its size and power, the consequences are much more damaging. It would serve the United States well to relativize its view of itself, and for it to take a more appropriate place among the nations of this world. However, history shows that this kind of shift does not happen voluntarily; instead it is forced upon a country by its own failure. It remains to be seen if the United States will be able to make the necessary leap in consciousness to avoid following in history's footsteps.     

Evidence for the Trait-Impulsivity Etiological Model in a Clinical Sample: Bifactor Structure and Its Relation to Impairment and Environmental Risk

The trait-impulsivity etiological model assumes that a general factor (trait-impulsivity) underlies attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), and other externalizing disorders. We investigated the plausibility of this assumption by testing the factor structure of ADHD and ODD in a bifactor framework for a clinical sample of 1420 children between 6 and 18 years of age (M = 9.99, SD = 3.34; 85% male). Further, the trait-impulsivity etiological model assumes that ODD emerges only if environmental risk factors are present. Our results support the validity of the trait-impulsivity etiological model, as they confirm that ADHD and ODD share a strong general factor of disruptive behavior (DB) in this clinical sample. Furthermore, unlike the subdimensions of ADHD, we found that the specific ODD factor explained as much true score variance as the general DB factor. This suggests that a common scale of ADHD and ODD may prove to be as important as a separate ODD subscale to assess externalizing problems in school-age children. However, all other subscales of ADHD may not explain sufficient true score variance once the impact of the general DB factor has been taken into consideration. In accordance with the trait-impulsivity model, we also showed that all factors, but predominantly the general factor and specific inattention factor, predicted parent-rated impairment, and that predominantly ODD and impulsivity are predicted by environmental risk factors.