Peculiar aspects of reading and writing performances in patients with olivopontocerebellar atrophy

Olivopontocerebellar atrophy (OPCA) is a still debated condition, of which motor disruption is the most common feature. A high incidence of associated mood disorders may exist, but there are few studies on concomitant cognitive impairment. Our aim was to assess whether there is reading and writing disruption in olivopontocerebellar atrophy (OPCA). 6 patients were administered different reading and writing tasks. Scores were then compared to those obtained by healthy volunteers. There was an evident impairment in reading and writing execution in our patients compared to those of the control group. On the contrary, no difference could be found in abstraction, problem-solving, and memory tasks. We discuss the results, debating the role of the cerebellum in the conscious process of cognition or in ocular movement control (necessary for reading and writing fluidity and effective execution) and in the dynamic activation of all the cerebral cortex mediated by the diffuse projection to the reticular system.     

Construing action abstractly and blurring social distinctions: implications for perceiving homogeneity among,but also empathizing with and helping,others

Most people's actions serve goals that, defined abstractly enough, are quite similar to one another. The authors thus proposed, and found, that construing action in abstract (vs. concrete) terms relates to perceiving greater similarity among persons both within and across different social groups (Studies 1-3). By fostering perspective taking, viewing action abstractly also related to empathizing with and expressing willingness to help nonstigmatized and stigmatized others (e.g., AIDS patients; Studies 3-5) and to donating money to help those in need (Study 6). These findings held when controlling for ideological, motivational, and broad personality variables. Abstract action construals, then, appear to blur social distinctions, fostering perspective taking and empathy on the one hand but also perceptions of group homogeneity on the other.     

Phase correction in sensorimotor synchronization: nonlinearities in voluntary and involuntary responses to perturbations

When finger taps are synchronized with an auditory sequence, both a global phase shift (PS) and a local event onset shift (EOS) in the sequence elicit a phase correction response (PCR) on the next tap. The PCR to an expected PS is intended and large, whereas that to an expected EOS is unintended and smaller. PCR magnitude increases linearly with perturbation magnitude up to about +/-15% of the sequence period (500 milliseconds). With larger perturbations, voluntary PCRs increase more slowly whereas involuntary PCRs reach an asymptote. These results, obtained previously in a blocked design [J. Exp. Psychol. Human Percept. Perform. (in press)], were replicated in a randomized design and in two additional task contexts that varied participants' intentions while neutralizing their expectations. Neither design nor expectations seemed to play a role. However, considerable individual differences were noted. The results confirm that phase correction is partially automatic and partially subject to voluntary control, and they provide empirical estimates of error correction functions that may be useful in formal modeling of sensorimotor synchronization behavior.     

In support of Pockett's critique of Libet's studies of the time course of consciousness

Susan Pockett presents sound arguments supporting her reinterpretations of data that Libet and co-workers used to support a number of intriguing and influential conclusions regarding the microgenesis and timing of (a) conscious sensory experience and (b) volitionally controlled motor responses. The following analysis, extending and elaborating some of her main arguments, proposes that Libet's experimental methodologies and rationales, and thus also his interpretation of data, are flawed and that neglect or ignorance of methodological and empirical constraints well known to sensory psychologists risks drawing premature or faulty conclusions about the timing of conscious experience.     

Regression periods in infancy: a case study from Catalonia

Based on Rijt-Plooij and Plooij's (1992) research on emergence of regression periods in the first two years of life, the presence of such periods in a group of 18 babies (10 boys and 8 girls, aged between 3 weeks and 14 months) from a Catalonian population was analyzed. The measurements were a questionnaire filled in by the infants' mothers, a semi-structured weekly tape-recorded interview, and observations in their homes. The procedure and the instruments used in the project follow those proposed by Rijt-Plooij and Plooij. Our results confirm the existence of the regression periods in the first year of children's life. Inter-coder agreement for trained coders was 78.2% and within-coder agreement was 90.1%. In the discussion, the possible meaning and relevance of regression periods in order to understand development from a psychobiological and social framework is commented upon.     

Body checking and avoidance and the core features of eating disorders among obese men and women seeking bariatric surgery

This study examined two aspects of body checking and avoidance, and their relations to the core psychopathology of eating disorders (EDs), in severely obese men and women seeking bariatric surgery. A consecutive series of 260 (44 male and 216 female) gastric bypass candidates were administered measures to assess body checking and avoidance, binge eating, restraint, and overevaluation of weight and shape. The majority of patients reported regularly pinching areas of their body to check for fatness and avoided wearing clothing that made them particularly aware of their body. Significant associations were observed between checking and restraint, and between avoidance and binge eating. Both checking and avoidance behaviors were significantly associated with overevaluation of weight and shape. The positive associations between each of the two behaviors (body checking and avoidance) with overevaluation of weight/shape remained significant even after controlling for the effects of avoidance on body checking and vice versa. Stepwise multiple regression analyses revealed that binge eating, body checking, and avoidance behaviors made significant unique contributions and jointly accounted for 22-25% of the variance in overevaluation of weight and shape, respectively. This study documents the presence of eating disorder psychopathology among severely obese patients seeking bariatric surgery. The findings support the view that body checking and avoidance behaviors are manifestations of overevaluation of weight and shape and disordered eating.     

Representation of subjective preferences under ambiguity

The objective of this paper is to show how potentially incomplete preferences of a decision maker (DM) on acts can be modelled formally in a subjective ambiguity perspective. We identify acts as functions from a state space Ω to bounded support (finitely additive) probabilities over a set X of prizes. Then, we characterize preferences over equibounded acts a which have a numerical representation by the family of functionals , where u is a cardinal utility on X (representing the risk attitude of the DM) and Π is a unique pointwise closed convex set of probabilities on all events in Ω (representing the ambiguity perceived by the DM). To this end, in addition to the usual independence and continuity assumptions, we add completeness and dominance for preferences restricted to constant acts; moreover, we consider two other properties (subjective monotonicity and coherence) related with the preferences of a DM who is not able, owing to his partial knowledge, to evaluate any event in Ω.     

Does the contextual interference effect last over extended transfer trials?

The contextual interference effect (random practice yields better transfer and retention compared to blocked practice) detected in a study of 24 boys and 33 girls randomly selected (M age = 10.5 yr., SD = .6) performing a linear positioning motor task seemed to dissipate in extended transfer trials.     

Confirmatory factor analysis of parents' and teachers' ratings of DSM-IV symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in a Spanish sample

Confirmatory factor analysis examined the factor structure of DSM IV Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder symptoms and analyzed the differences in informants' ratings of ADHD symptoms by children's age and sex. A sample of 1,018 Spanish school children, 574 girls and 444 boys, ages 4 to 12 years, was rated by teachers and parents. Confirmatory factor analysis showed a similar fit for the three-factor model of Inattention, Hyperactivity, and Impulsivity (teachers: CFI = .976, RMR = .041, % of total variance = 83.2; parents: CFI = .969, RMR = .037, % of total variance = 82.7) and for the two-factor model of Inattention and Hyperactivity Impulsivity (teachers: CFI = .958, RMR = .044, % of total variance = 79.3; parents: CFI = .961, RMR = .038, % of total variance, 79.9). The two-factor model was selected as a parsi monious representation of the teachers' and parents' ratings of ADHD symptoms. Analyses of variance indicated significant differences in teachers' and parents' mean ratings across sex and school grades of children.