MRI-Assessed Volume of Cerebellum Correlates with Associative Learning

Richard F. Thompson's cerebellar model of classical eyeblink conditioning highlights Purkinje cells in cerebellar cortex and principal cells in the deep cerebellar nucleus as the integrating cells for acquisition of conditioned responses (CRs). CR acquisition is significantly slower in rabbits with lesions to cerebellar cortex and in Purkinje cell-deficient mice that lose all cerebellar cortical Purkinje cells. Purkinje cells are the largest neurons in the cerebellum and contribute significantly to cerebellar volume. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to assess cerebellar volume in humans. Cerebellar volume was related to eyeblink conditioning (400-ms delay procedure) in 8 adults (21-35 years) and compared to 8 older adults (77-95 years) tested previously (Woodruff-Pak, Goldenberg, Downey-Lamb, Boyko, & Lemieux, 2000). In the young adult sample, there was a high correlation between percentage of CRs in a session and cerebellar volume (corrected for total intracranial volume [TIV], r =.58, p =.066). There were statistically significant age differences in cerebellar volume, t(14) = 8.96, p <.001, and percentage of CRs, t(14) = 3.85, p <.002, but no age difference in TIV. Combining the young and older adult sample, the correlation between percentage of CRs and cerebellar volume (corrected for TIV) was.832 (p <.001). Cerebellar volume showed age-related deficits likely due to Purkinje cell loss. Individual differences in classical eyeblink conditioning are associated with differences in cerebellar volume, supporting Thompson's model of a cerebellar cortical role in facilitating this form of associative learning.     

The Ecology of Adolescent Substance Abuse Service Utilization

This paper presents an ecological-community model toward the explanation of variation in patterns of substance abuse (SA) service utilization among adolescents who are enrolled in Tennessee's Medicaid program (TennCare). Guided by a theoretical framework that draws from the social ecology work of Bronfenbrenner and health services utilization models promoted by Aday and Andersen, we apply a social indicators approach toward explaining the impact of community ecology on identification of SA and treatment engagement. Both county-level rates and individual-level treatment utilization are examined and hierarchical linear modeling is incorporated to examine the individual-in-community phenomenon. This study is an expansion of previous service utilization research and suggests that explanations of youth's service utilization must necessarily include not only individual, familial, and service system characteristics, but community factors, as well.     

Men's sex-dominance inhibition: do men automatically refrain from sexually dominant behavior?

Men receive conflicting messages about their sexual roles in heterosexual relationships. Men are socialized to initiate and direct sexual activities with women; yet societal norms also proscribe the sexual domination and coercion of women. The authors test these competing hypotheses by assessing whether men inhibit the link between sex and dominance. In Studies 1a and b, using a subliminal priming procedure embedded in a lexical decision task, the authors demonstrate that men automatically suppress the concept of dominance following exposure to subliminal sex primes relative to neutral primes. In Studies 2 and 3, the authors show that men who are less likely to perceive sexual assertiveness as necessary, to refrain from dominant sexual behavior, and who do not invest in masculine gender ideals are more likely to inhibit dominant thoughts following sex primes. Implications for theories of automatic cognitive networks and gender-based sexual roles are discussed.     

Imaging recollection and familiarity in the medial temporal lobe: a three-component model

The medial temporal lobe (MTL) plays a crucial role in supporting memory for events, but the functional organization of regions in the MTL remains controversial, especially regarding the extent to which different subregions support recognition based on familiarity or recollection. Here we review results from functional neuroimaging studies showing that, whereas activity in the hippocampus and posterior parahippocampal gyrus is disproportionately associated with recollection, activity in the anterior parahippocampal gyrus is disproportionately associated with familiarity. The results are consistent with the idea that the parahippocampal cortex (located in the posterior parahippocampal gyrus) supports recollection by encoding and retrieving contextual information, whereas the hippocampus supports recollection by associating item and context information. By contrast, perirhinal cortex (located in the anterior parahippocampal gyrus) supports familiarity by encoding and retrieving specific item information. We discuss the implications of a 'binding of item and context' (BIC) model for studies of recognition memory. This model argues that there is no simple mapping between MTL regions and recollection and familiarity, but rather that the involvement of MTL regions in these processes depends on the specific demands of the task and the type of information involved. We highlight several predictions for future imaging studies that follow from the BIC model.     

Interaction Effects in the Theory of Planned Behavior: The Interplay of Self-Identity and Past Behavior

This research used a revised theory of planned behavior (TPB) model, which incorporated self-identity and past behavior—and the interaction between these constructs—in order to improve the model's predictive power in relation to consumer behavior (purchasing one's preferred beer). At Time 1, respondents ( N  = 108) completed measures of attitudes, perceived behavioral control, subjective norm, self-identity, past behavior, and intentions. Behavior was assessed 1 week later. All predictors were positively related to intentions. Self-identity and past behavior interacted to influence intentions: Self-identity had a stronger influence on intentions at low, rather than high, levels of past behavior. Intentions and past behavior were predictive of Time 2 behavior. These findings emphasize the need to consider identity issues in the TPB.     

Program of training in solution of practical problems applied to people with intellectual disability

The lack of programs to train people in practical problem-solving is one of the challenges that professionals who attend people with mental deficiency must cope with. The main goal of this study is to assess the effects of a program designed to improve these skills, aimed at people with intellectual discapacity. The sample was made up of 66 subjects, aged between 17 and 36 years old. The program was based on the use of examples of fictitious characters who undergo situations that are similar to those of the subjects to whom the program is administered, and techniques to improve skills were generated from these situations. In order to achieve the goal, a classic pre- posttest design was used, with an experimental and a control group. The results show positive effects in most of the variables considered as a consequence of the administration of the program.     

A comparison of song-lyric and prose self-instruction procedures for increasing novel skills in children

We compared the effects of the effects of self-instructions in the form of prose or song lyrics in the acquisition of gross motor tasks in 4 third-grade children. We taught participants 4 pairs of gross motor tasks, with one task in each pair taught with prose self-instructions and the other taught with song lyric self-instructions. Both self-instruction procedures were effective for teaching tasks; however, acquisition was quicker with song lyric self-instruction for 4 task pairs, acquisition was quicker with prose self-instruction for 3 task pairs; and similar for 1 task pair. Participants were then able to select their preferred method of self-instruction for a novel, applied skill. Two participants selected song-lyric self-instructions and 2 participants selected prose self-instructions.     

Mirror for the Other: Problem of the Self in Continental Philosophy (from Hegel to Lacan)

This essay intends to explore the genesis of one of the key concepts in continental philosophy of personalism–the concept of the ‘Other. It attempts to use most influential philosophical and psychological contexts to demonstrate how the Self is linked to the Other logically, notionally and conceptually. The present analysis employs two principal approaches to the problem–philosophical and psychological. From the stand point of the former, the key figure of the hereunder discourse is Hegel and his theory, while the later will be represented predominantly by Lacanian ideas. The present article will also discuss major influences of Hegel’s philosophical ideas on the Lacan’s theory.