Right-sided human prefrontal brain activation during acquisition of conditioned fear

This H2(15)O positron emission tomography (PET) study reports on relative regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) alterations during fear conditioning in humans. In the PET scanner, subjects viewed a TV screen with either visual white noise or snake videotapes displayed alone, then with electric shocks, followed by final presentations of white noise and snakes. Autonomic nervous system responses confirmed fear conditioning only to snakes. To reveal neural activation during acquisition, while equating sensory stimulation, scans during snakes with shocks and white noise alone were contrasted against white noise with shocks and snakes alone. During acquisition, rCBF increased in the right medial frontal gyrus, supporting a role for the prefrontal cortex in fear conditioning to unmasked evolutionary fear-relevant stimuli.     

Assessing alexithymia and related emotional ability constructs using multiple methods: interrelationships among measures

This study examined relationships among various measures of emotional ability reflecting different methods of assessment: self-report, clinical interview, collateral report, and emotion-relevant performance. On 140 young adults, the authors assessed self-reported alexithymia, emotional approach coping, and trait metamood skills; observer-reported alexithymia; interviewer-rated alexithymia; emotional awareness in response to vignettes; and emotional intelligence test performance. There were moderate magnitude correlations among the self-report measures, but correlations among other measures were relatively low. Confirmatory factor analyses supported a 3-factor model in which explicit self, implicit self, and explicit other measures were differentiated. These emotional ability measures do not form a unitary construct but differ as a function of the person providing the information and whether the measure is explicit or implicit.     

Mother‐child interaction is associated with neurocognitive outcome in extremely low gestational age children

Early mother‐child interaction is one of the factors suggested to have an impact on neurocognitive development of extremely low gestational age (ELGA) children. Our aim was to examine associations of mother‐child interaction with neurocognitive outcome, neurological impairments and neonatal brain injuries in ELGA children. A prospective study of 48 ELGA children, born before 28 gestational weeks (26.3 ± 1.2 weeks, birth weight 876 g ± 194 g), and 16 term controls. Brain MRI was performed at term‐equivalent age. At two years of corrected age, the mother‐child interaction was assessed in a structured play situation using the Erickson Scales and Mutually Responsive Orientation Scales. Neurocognitive outcome was assessed with Griffiths Mental Developmental Scales (GMDS) and Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development ‐ Third Edition (BSID‐III) and with Hempel neurological examination. Among ELGA children, higher quality of dyadic relationship and maternal sensitivity, responsiveness, and supportiveness were associated with positive neurocognitive outcome measured both with GMDS and BSID‐III (adjusted p < 0.05). This association remained after adjusting for mother's educational level. Neurological impairments at two years, white matter or gray matter abnormalities in MRI at term‐equivalent age, and grade III‐IV intraventricular hemorrhage during the neonatal period were not associated with mother‐child interaction. This study emphasizes the importance of the quality of mother‐child interaction after extremely preterm birth for neurocognitive development. Neonatal brain injury and neurological impairments were not associated with worse parent‐child interaction after two years.     

Antecedents of Business Opportunity Identification and Innovation: Investigating the Interplay of Information Processing and Information Acquisition

Building on conceptual frameworks of entrepreneurial discovery, we argue that active information search compensates for a lack of entrepreneurial experience and enhances the effects of divergent thinking and general mental ability (GMA) on opportunity identification. We sampled 100 business owners in South Africa. Results confirmed the hypothesised moderating effects of active information search on the relationships of entrepreneurial experience and divergent thinking on opportunity identification. Furthermore, we found direct effects of opportunity identification and conditional indirect effects of divergent thinking on innovativeness of product/service innovations. Our findings suggest that a joint examination of entrepreneurial experience and divergent thinking with active information search helps to better understand opportunity identification.     

Predictors of re‐employment: A question of attitude,behavior, or gender?

This longitudinal study examined the predictive value of attitudes, personal‐related variables, job search behaviour, and demographic variables on re‐employment among 142 assembly workers who had been made redundant. Participants completed a questionnaire within a week after leaving their jobs, and another 15 months later. Results of hierarchical logistic regression revealed that gender (being male), was the strongest predictor of re‐employment. Willingness to relocate and desire to change occupation also increased the odds of re‐employment 15 months after dismissal. On the other hand ‐ having children at home and anonymous‐passive job‐search behaviour, which is more prevalent among women, decreased the odds for re‐employment. The study is contributing to research by revealing gender differences in job search behaviour and the importance of focusing qualitative differences instead of merely quantitative measures in job‐search behaviour. And even more important, despite attitude and job‐search behaviour, there is still differences that seems to be related to gender and family responsibility.     

Parity and Comparability—a Concern Regarding Chang’s Chaining Argument

According to Ruth Chang the three standard positive value relations: “better than”, “worse than” and “equally good” do not fully exhaust the conceptual space for positive value relations. According to her, there is room for a fourth positive value relation, which she calls “parity”. Her argument for parity comes in three parts. First, she argues that there are items that are not related by the standard three value relations. Second, that these items are not incomparable, and third, that the phenomena she has focused on are not due to the vagueness of the comparative predicates (i.e., that it is indeterminate which of the standard value relations that holds). This paper focuses on the second part of the argument and an objection is presented. By assuming the Small Unidimensional Difference Principle, which is a key premise for the second part of the argument, Chang’s argument could be accused of begging the question. More so, by assuming this principle, the space for incomparability gets severely limited. If these worries are justified, then Chang’s argument for parity as a fourth form of comparability is unsuccessful.     

Researching stigma as an outsider: considerations for qualitative outsider research

In this article, we discuss a number of important considerations that we have encountered in the process of researching health stigma topics as “outsiders”: researchers (personally) unfamiliar with the experience or topic under study. In particular, we discuss the importance of the following: a reflective stance, challenging negative representations, flexible and sensitive recruitment strategies, validating experiences of stigma, and participant control and power. We see these points as particularly important in the context of researching stigma as outsiders, where our privilege may contribute to unhelpful, narrow, de-politicized or overly simplistic representations of particular “groups” or experiences. We share these considerations in hope of assisting other researchers to reflect on, and articulate, how they negotiate their positionings within their research and the ways in which they shape and construct the research agenda and, by implication, the people or topics under examination.     

Predicting Treatment Outcomes From Internet-Based Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder

Internet-based cognitive-behavioral therapy (ICBT) with therapist support shows promise as a treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Yet, not all patients respond to ICBT. It is therefore important to identify predictors of ICBT outcomes to determine who is likely to benefit. Relative to the large literature on predictors of outcomes for in-person CBT for OCD, very few studies have investigated ICBT predictors. Therefore, we analyzed predictors of outcome in an open trial (n = 30) of ICBT for OCD using the OCD-NET platform, which consists of 10 online modules delivered with therapist support. The Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (YBOCS) was administered by independent raters as the primary outcome measure at baseline and posttreatment. In this sample, greater baseline OCD severity and OCD-related avoidance behaviors were associated with higher end-state OCD symptoms (i.e., poorer outcome). Patients with a past history of face-to-face CBT for OCD also had worse outcomes. Although these results require replication, these factors may identify individuals at risk for poor ICBT outcomes.