Hippocampal structure and human cognition: Key role of spatial processing and evidence supporting the efficiency hypothesis in females

Here we apply a method for automated segmentation of the hippocampus in 3D high-resolution structural brain MRI scans. One hundred and four healthy young adults completed twenty one tasks measuring abstract, verbal, and spatial intelligence, along with working memory, executive control, attention, and processing speed. After permutation tests corrected for multiple comparisons across vertices (p < .05), significant relationships were found for spatial intelligence, spatial working memory, and spatial executive control. Interactions with sex revealed significant relationships with the general factor of intelligence (g), along with abstract and spatial intelligence. These correlations were mainly positive for males but negative for females, which might support the efficiency hypothesis in women. Verbal intelligence, attention, and processing speed were not related to hippocampal structural differences.     

Genetic and adoptive motherhood: Stress,marital relationship,and child care support

In this paper we characterize adoptive and genetic motherhood with or without stress indicators. Participants were 86 mothers (36 adoptive, 50 genetic) with children from 0 to 12 years old. They answered questions about focal child and mother profile, marital relationship, child care support and the Lipp's Stress Symptoms Inventory for Adults. Results showed that mothers in both groups reported child care support, but there was more participation of nonrelatives in the care of adoptive children and relatives in the care of genetic children. There was greater marital stability and less conflict with the arrival of the child in the adoptive families and predominance of stress indicators in genetic mothers. We concluded that, although there are differences between adoptive and genetic motherhood, these do not imply advantages for one versus the other. Moreover, marital stability related to the adoption process and sociodemographic characteristics of adoptive mothers may have contributed to lower prevalence of stress.     

A Puzzle About Ineffable Propositions

I will argue for localism about credal assignments: the view that credal assignments are well-defined only relative to suitably constrained sets of possibilities. I will motivate the position by suggesting that it is the best way of addressing a puzzle devised by Roger White.     

Neurophysiological differences in reward processing in anhedonics

Anhedonia is characterized by a reduced capacity to experience pleasure in response to rewarding stimuli and has been considered a possible candidate endophenotype in depression and schizophrenia. However, it is still not well understood whether these reward deficits are confined to anticipatory and/or to consummatory experiences of pleasure. In the present study, we recorded electrophysiological responses (event-related brain potentials [ERPs] and oscillatory activity) to monetary gains and losses in extreme groups of anhedonic and nonanhedonic participants. The anhedonic participants showed reduced motivation to incur risky decisions, especially after monetary rewards. These sequential behavioral effects were correlated with an increased sensitivity to punishment, which psychometrically characterized the anhedonic group. In contrast, both electrophysiological measures associated with the impacts of monetary losses and gains—the feedback-related negativity (FRN) and the beta–gamma oscillatory component—clearly revealed preserved consummatory responses in anhedonic participants. However, anhedonics showed a drastic increase in frontal medial theta power after receiving the maximum monetary gain. This increase in theta oscillatory activity could be associated with an increase in conflict and cognitive control for unexpected large positive rewards, thus indexing the violation of default negative expectations built up across the task in anhedonic participants. Thus, the present results showed that participants with elevated scores on Chapman’s Physical Anhedonia Scale were more sensitive to possible punishments, showed deficits in the correct integration of response outcomes in their actions, and evidenced deficits in sustaining positive expectations of future rewards. This overall pattern suggests an effect of anhedonia in the motivational aspects of approach behavior rather than in consummatory processes.     

Fitting model-based psychometric functions to simultaneity and temporal-order judgment data: MATLAB and R routines

Research on temporal-order perception uses temporal-order judgment (TOJ) tasks or synchrony judgment (SJ) tasks in their binary SJ2 or ternary SJ3 variants. In all cases, two stimuli are presented with some temporal delay, and observers judge the order of presentation. Arbitrary psychometric functions are typically fitted to obtain performance measures such as sensitivity or the point of subjective simultaneity, but the parameters of these functions are uninterpretable. We describe routines in MATLAB and R that fit model-based functions whose parameters are interpretable in terms of the processes underlying temporal-order and simultaneity judgments and responses. These functions arise from an independent-channels model assuming arrival latencies with exponential distributions and a trichotomous decision space. Different routines fit data separately for SJ2, SJ3, and TOJ tasks, jointly for any two tasks, or also jointly for the three tasks (for common cases in which two or even the three tasks were used with the same stimuli and participants). Additional routines provide bootstrap p-values and confidence intervals for estimated parameters. A further routine is included that obtains performance measures from the fitted functions. An R package for Windows and source code of the MATLAB and R routines are available as Supplementary Files.     

A system for automatic recording and analysis of motor activity in rats

We describe the design and evaluation of an electronic system for the automatic recording of motor activity in rats. The device continually locates the position of a rat inside a transparent acrylic cube (50 cm/side) with infrared sensors arranged on its walls so as to correspond to the x-, y-, and z-axes. The system is governed by two microcontrollers. The raw data are saved in a text file within a secure digital memory card, and offline analyses are performed with a library of programs that automatically compute several parameters based on the sequence of coordinates and the time of occurrence of each movement. Four analyses can be made at specified time intervals: traveled distance (cm), movement speed (cm/s), time spent in vertical exploration (s), and thigmotaxis (%). In addition, three analyses are made for the total duration of the experiment: time spent at each x–y coordinate pair (min), time spent on vertical exploration at each x–y coordinate pair (s), and frequency distribution of vertical exploration episodes of distinct durations. User profiles of frequently analyzed parameters may be created and saved for future experimental analyses, thus obtaining a full set of analyses for a group of rats in a short time. The performance of the developed system was assessed by recording the spontaneous motor activity of six rats, while their behaviors were simultaneously videotaped for manual analysis by two trained observers. A high and significant correlation was found between the values measured by the electronic system and by the observers.     

Is it possible to be too happy? Happiness,personality, and psychopathology

The types of relationship between happiness, personality and psychopatholgy are assessed in an available sample (n = 321, adults, both sexes). Empirical results from two happiness scales and two questionnaires, one of personality (NEO-PI-R) and other of personality disorders (Loranger's scale), do not confirm the Diener's threshold hypothesis, that makes a distinction between optimum and maximum happiness; or the Seligman's supposition, that assumes that happiness has no limits; The main results are: a) negative affect (Neuroticism) is negatively related to happiness across its full range; b) Extraversion and Openness to experience are positively related to happiness across its full range; c) in the rest of the basic personality factors, relationships are not linear, though not in the sense anticipated by Diener, and d) in personality disorders, the tendencies observed diversify according to the type of disorder, and the type of happiness factor. On most occasions, the close relationship between personality disorders and the Neuroticism dimension is verified in a consistent manner. These results are discussed within the context of clinical psychology, and the general theory about happiness.     

Prediction of treatment outcomes and longitudinal analysis in children with autism undergoing intensive behavioral intervention

Outcome prediction is an important component of treatment planning and prognosis. However, reliable predictors of intensive behavioral intervention (IBI) have not been clearly established. IBI is an evidence-based approach to the systematic teaching of academic, social, verbal, and daily living skills to individuals with autism spectrum disorder. Incorporating longitudinal analysis to IBI outcome studies may help to identify outcome predictors of clinical value. Twenty-four children with autism underwent on average two years of IBI and completed language, daily living skills, cognitive, and motor assessments (Early Learning Accomplishment Profile and the Learning Accomplishment Profile-Diagnostic, 3rd edition) every six months. We used multilevel analysis to identify potential longitudinal predictors including gender, age, intervention intensity, intervention duration, total intervention time, and pre-intervention functioning. Results indicated that total intervention time, pre-intervention functioning, and age caused the greatest increase in goodness-of-fit of the longitudinal multilevel models. Longitudinal analysis is a promising analytical strategy to identify reliable predictors of the clinical outcome of IBI.     

The effect of personal and group discrimination on the subjective well-being of people with mental illness: the role of internalized stigma and collective action intention

The goal of this study is to test a model in which personal discrimination predicts internalized stigma, while group discrimination predicts a greater willingness to engage in collective action. Internalized stigma and collective action, in turn, are associated to positive and negative affect. A cross-sectional study with 213 people with mental illness was conducted. The model was tested using path analysis. Although the data supported the model, its fit was not sufficiently good. A respecified model, in which a direct path from collective action to internalized stigma was added, showed a good fit. Personal and group discrimination appear to impact subjective well-being through two different paths: the internalization of stigma and collective action intentions, respectively. These two paths, however, are not completely independent, as collective action predicts a lower internalization of stigma. Thus, collective action appears as an important tool to reduce internalized stigma and improve subjective well-being. Future interventions to reduce the impact of stigma should fight the internalization of stigma and promote collective action are suggested.     

Interest as a Moderator in the Relationship Between Challenge/Skills Balance and Flow at Work: An Analysis at Within-Individual Level

Considering flow as a non-ergodic process (i.e. non-homogeneous across individuals and non-stationary over time) that happens at the within-individual level, in this research we work with Bakker’s model that propose flow as made up by three components: intrinsic motivation, enjoyment, and absorption. Taking into account that flow theory can be considered as an intrinsic motivation theory, and the recent proposals about the need to distinguish between pre-conditions of flow and the flow experience itself, we look at interest as a moderator between the challenge/skills balance and the experience of flow, rather than a component of the flow experience. A total of 3640 recordings were collected from a sample of 58 workers using an experience sampling method (several registers a day, during 21 working days). The data was analyzed using regression techniques in each participant (i.e. at within-individual level). Our work tries to respond to the following two research questions: Will interest play a moderating role in the relationship between challenge/skills balance and flow? Will a non-linear model (cusp catastrophe model) better explain the relationship among challenge/skills balance, interest, and flow? The results suggest that our hypotheses were correct: including interest as moderator better explains the relationship between challenge/skills balance and flow in comparison to a model without moderation (R² values change from 0.33 to 0.50). Additionally, carrying out the analysis following non-linear techniques explained more variance as well (R² = 0.67), and this increment was significant. These results support the idea that interest should be considered as a key precondition for the appearance of flow, and this relationship is non-linear. We could say that these findings are exemplary in the field and brings up questions for their application in further research.