Brain c-Fos immunocytochemistry and cytochrome oxidase histochemistry after a fear conditioning task

The involvement of the basolateral and the medial amygdala in fear conditioning was evaluated using different markers of neuronal activation. The method described here is a combination of cytochrome oxidase (CO) histochemistry and c-Fos immunocytochemistry on fresh frozen brain sections. Freezing behavior was used as an index of auditory and contextual fear conditioning. As expected, freezing scores were significantly higher in rats exposed to tone-shock pairings in a distinctive environment (conditioned; COND), as compared to rats that did not receive any shocks (UNCD). CO labeling was increased in the basolateral and medial amygdala of the COND group. Conversely, c-Fos expression in the basolateral and medial amygdala was lower in the COND group as compared to the UNCD group. Furthermore, c-Fos expression was particularly high in the medial amygdala of the UNCD group. The data provided by both techniques indicate that these amygdalar nuclei could play different roles on auditory and contextual fear conditioning.     

Job stress and burnout in residential child care workers in Spain

The aim of this study is to identify the variables related to stress and burnout syndrome among child residential care workers, as well as the most problematic areas of their work. A random sample of 257 professionals working in the Residential Child Care sector in Spain was studied by means of the TBQ questionnaire (Teachers' Burnout Questionnaire), adapted to child care workers. The results enabled us to detect the principal sources of job dissatisfaction, as well as revealing a greater incidence of stress than of burnout. Certain personal and work variables displayed relevant relationships with these measures.     

Psychometric properties of the d2 selective attention test in a sample of premature and born-at-term babies

The psychometric properties of the d2 Selective Attention Test are analyzed in two samples of premature ( n = 63) and born-at-term ( n = 78) children. The reliability coefficients (internal consistency) reached values of around .90. Principal components analysis revealed a three-factor structure, which accounts for 58% of the variance, and thus coincides with the number of factors presented in the manual of the Spanish adaptation of the test but not with their composition. Results suggest that the d2 test has adequate psychometric properties both for the global sample and for each sub-sample.     

Psychological Follow-up of Presymptomatic Genetic Testing for Spinocerebellar Ataxia Type 2 (SCA2) in Cuba

Presymptomatic testing for spinocerebellar ataxia type 2 (SCA2) in Cuba started five years ago. We have now investigated the psychological impact of test results on 150 individuals at 50% risk for SCA2. In a prospective study, psychological instruments were used to evaluate depression, anxiety and family functioning (1) before testing and (2) one year after disclosure of the test result. One year after, anxiety and depression levels decreased both in carriers and non-carriers, but anxiety decreased significantly more in carriers. Pathological levels of anxiety were seen mostly in members of dysfunctional families, but decreased more in them than in other consultands. Presymptomatic testing thus seems to have been especially beneficial for these testees, possibly due to a greater gain from the psychosocial support received. It would be pertinent to evaluate now the impact of other psychosocial variables and perform longer-term longitudinal studies.     

Glucocorticoid-mediated effects of systemic oxytocin upon memory retrieval

During the last decade, a considerable amount of evidence has accumulated to show that oxytocin (OT) is involved with functions other than its classical roles in reproduction-associated processes, such as social recognition, maternal behavior and neuroendocrine regulation of the stress response. It has been shown, for instance, that post-training systemic administration of oxytocin in mice produces an amnestic effect on the step-through inhibitory avoidance. Since it is still unclear how systemic levels of OT may affect CNS memory processes, our aim here was to investigate the hypothesis that systemic OT effects on memory retrieval might be mediated through an oxytocin-induced decrease in glucocorticoid release. In our first experiment, we have found an amnestic effect of i.p. pre-test 0.4 microg/kg of OT upon memory retrieval in the inhibitory avoidance task (IA); this OT dose was shown to (a) significantly decrease plasma corticosterone levels when compared to the saline group, and (b) not to cause any anxiety effects by itself in a plus-maze task. At last, an ineffective-by-itself dose of dexamethasone was able to reverse the amnestic effect of this OT dose. Our results suggest that the amnestic effect of systemically administered oxytocin upon memory retrieval in the inhibitory avoidance task was probably caused by an oxytocin-induced decrease in glucocorticoid release from the adrenal gland.     

Virtual Reality Exposure in the Treatment of Panic Disorder With Agoraphobia: A Case Study

In this work we present a case example of the use of virtual reality exposure for the treatment of panic disorder with agoraphobia. The assessment protocol and procedure (including a baseline period) and the cognitive-behavioral treatment program are described. The clinical measures were categorized into target behaviors, panic and agoraphobia measures, global functioning, and general psychopathology measures. The patient’s expectations and satisfaction with regard to the virtual treatment were also assessed. The results showed an important reduction in all clinical measures after treatment with virtual exposure and the patient reached the therapeutic goals established during the pretreatment assessment. The patient also reported a good acceptance of virtual exposure. The goals achieved in the virtual environment generalized to real agoraphobic situations and to other real situations not treated. Three-, 6-, and 12-month follow-up assessments were conducted and long-term therapeutic gains were maintained.     

The proper sequence for correcting correlation coefficients for range restriction and unreliability

Corrections of correlations for range restriction (i.e., selection) and unreliability are common in psychometric work. The current rule of thumb for determining the order in which to apply these corrections looks to the nature of the reliability estimate (i.e., restricted or unrestricted). While intuitive, this rule of thumb is untenable when the correction includes the variable upon which selection is made, as is generally the case. Using classical test theory, we show that it is the nature of the range restriction, not the nature of the available reliability coefficient, that determines the sequence for applying corrections for range restriction and unreliability.We would like to thank Malcolm James Ree for his encouragement and helpful comments as well as those of the editors, associate editor, and reviewers.     

Racial phenotypicality bias in educational expectations for both male and female teenagers from different socioeconomic backgrounds

In three experiments (N = 56, 99, and 225), we showed that racial phenotypicality bias characterizes educational expectations for Chilean mestizo students: participants displayed more positive educational expectations for light complexioned than for dark complexioned high school students. In Study 1, with male high school target students, the relation between racial phenotypic appearance and educational expectations was mediated by differences in perceived competence. Study 2 suggests that the gender of the target student did not influence the occurrence of racial phenotypicality bias. Study 3 showed that racial phenotypicality bias occurs in both university students and high school teachers' judgements. Although socioeconomic background of the target student partially explained the effects of racial phenotypic appearance (especially in teachers), the latter exerted an additional and independent influence on educational expectations. These results underline the fact that effects of racial phenotypicality bias should not be overlooked in the educational domain. As mediational analyses suggested, these effects only partly occur because of stereotypical associations between racial phenotypic appearance and socioeconomic background, but also because of stereotypical associations between racial phenotypic appearance and attributed competence.     

Psycho-ophthalmology: Contributions of Health psychology to the assessment and treatment of glaucoma

Background: Asymptomatic in its early stages, glaucoma is the second leading cause of blindness worldwide. While psychosocial factors are taken into consideration for a host of diseases such as cancer, heart disease and autoimmune conditions, to date, psychological issues have been ignored in the clinical management of glaucoma.

Objective: This work reviews the most relevant contributions from a health psychology perspective for the assessment and treatment of glaucoma, which is emerging in the field of psycho-ophthalmology.

Method: To provide scientific evidence regarding contributions of psychology to the comprehension of glaucoma, a bibliographic review of three databases (Psicodoc, PsycInfo and Medline) was conducted, spanning the period between 1940 and 2016.

Results: This review yielded a total of 66 studies published in the period analysed and identified three areas where health psychology has made substantive contributions to glaucoma screening, monitoring and treatment: the emotional impact on patients suffering from glaucoma, the adherence to treatment and the effects of stress on intraocular pressure.

Conclusions: A health psychology approach for research and therapy of glaucoma must focus on the management of the negative affect associated with the diagnosis, the optimisation of treatment adherence and the stress management of the intraocular pressure measurements.     

Retrieval does not induce reconsolidation of inhibitory avoidance memory

It has been suggested that retrieval during a nonreinforced test induces reconsolidation instead of extinction of the mnemonic trace. Reconsolidation would preserve the original memory from the labilization induced by its nonreinforced recall through a hitherto uncharacterized mechanism requiring protein synthesis. Given the importance that such a process would have in terms of maintaining, as part of the animal behavioral repertoire, a learned response that has been devalued by experience, we analyzed its existence for the memory associated with a one-trial, step-down inhibitory avoidance task (IA), a memory whose consolidation and extinction require protein synthesis in the CA1 region of the dorsal hippocampus (CA1) and involve the participation of the basolateral amygdala (BLA) and entorhinal cortex (ENT). Rats were trained in IA, and 24 h later they were submitted either to a pure reactivation session (retrieval without stepping down), which was unable by itself to initiate extinction of the avoidance response, or to a second training session. Fifteen minutes before or 3 h after either the reactivation or the retraining sessions, animals were infused with the protein synthesis inhibitor anisomycin (ANI) into CA1, BLA, or ENT. Contrary to the prediction of the reconsolidation hypothesis, none of these treatments affected subsequent memory retention. Because reconsolidation is regarded to be a direct consequence of retrieval, one would expect that, when given before a retention test or a pure reactivation session, enhancers of memory expression should permanently improve retention and, therefore, facilitate retrieval both in that and in subsequent sessions. Using two well-known retrieval enhancers, noradrenaline and adrenocorticotropin(1-24), we could not find any evidence suggestive of reconsolidation. Hence, our results indicate that there is no retrieval-induced, protein synthesis-dependent process that would cause reconsolidation of IA memory.