More than mere mimicry? The influence of emotion on rapid facial reactions to faces

Within a second of seeing an emotional facial expression, people typically match that expression. These rapid facial reactions (RFRs), often termed mimicry, are implicated in emotional contagion, social perception, and embodied affect, yet ambiguity remains regarding the mechanism(s) involved. Two studies evaluated whether RFRs to faces are solely nonaffective motor responses or whether emotional processes are involved. Brow (corrugator, related to anger) and forehead (frontalis, related to fear) activity were recorded using facial electromyography (EMG) while undergraduates in two conditions (fear induction vs. neutral) viewed fear, anger, and neutral facial expressions. As predicted, fear induction increased fear expressions to angry faces within 1000 ms of exposure, demonstrating an emotional component of RFRs. This did not merely reflect increased fear from the induction, because responses to neutral faces were unaffected. Considering RFRs to be merely nonaffective automatic reactions is inaccurate. RFRs are not purely motor mimicry; emotion influences early facial responses to faces. The relevance of these data to emotional contagion, autism, and the mirror system-based perspectives on imitation is discussed.     

A verification framework for agent programming with declarative goals

A long and lasting problem in agent research has been to close the gap between agent logics and agent programming frameworks. The main reason for this problem of establishing a link between agent logics and agent programming frameworks is identified and explained by the fact that agent programming frameworks have hardly incorporated the concept of a declarative goal. Instead, such frameworks have focused mainly on plans or goals-to-do instead of the end goals to be realised which are also called goals-to-be. In this paper, the programming language GOAL is introduced which incorporates such declarative goals. The notion of a commitment strategy—one of the main theoretical insights due to agent logics, which explains the relation between beliefs and goals—is used to construct a computational semantics for GOAL. Finally, a proof theory for proving properties of GOAL agents is introduced. Thus, the main contribution of this paper, rather than the language GOAL itself, is that we offer a complete theory of agent programming in the sense that our theory provides both for a programming framework and a programming logic for such agents. An example program is proven correct by using this programming logic.     

Obsessive-compulsive disorder with comorbid major depression: what is the role of cognitive factors?

Individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) commonly experience comorbid mood disturbances such as major depressive disorder (MDD). Previous studies that have compared OCD patients with and without MDD have revealed differences in demographic characteristics, clinical severity, and symptom presentation between these two patient groups. Previous studies have not, however, examined whether there are differences with respect to cognitive processes. The present study therefore aimed to address this gap in the literature. Eighty patients with OCD and no unipolar mood disorders were compared with 34 OCD patients with comorbid major depression on measures of OCD symptoms, cognitions, and insight, as well as on measures of depression and functional impairment. Whereas depressed OCD patients evidenced higher scores than non-depressed OCD patients on semi-idiographic measures of OCD symptoms and cognitions, this was not the case for nomothetic measures. Functional impairment and the tendency to misinterpret innocuous intrusive thoughts as significant emerged as unique predictors of depression within the entire sample of OCD patients. Results are discussed in terms of (a) the importance of semi-idiographic assessment of OCD, (b) possible explanations for the relationship between OCD symptoms, depression, and cognitive processes, and (c) the psychological treatment of comorbid OCD and MDD.     

The relationships among asymmetry in task dependence, perceived helping behavior, and trust

Social relations analyses involving 132 working relationships among 60 individuals from 29 teams revealed that an increase in a team member's task dependence on another team member was associated with higher levels of perceived help from and interpersonal trust in that specific team member, provided the other member was highly task dependent on the focal member. The degree to which an actor perceived a relationship with a partner to be helpful partially mediated the relationship between task dependence and trust. These findings highlight the importance of attending to asymmetries in task dependence and provide valuable insights into mechanisms that can explain the development of trust in organizational work teams.     

The effects of errorless learning and backward chaining on the acquisition of Internet skills in adults with developmental disabilities

An important area in the learning and development of individuals with disabilities is the acquisition of independent, age-appropriate leisure skills. Three adults with autism and mental retardation were taught to access specific Internet sites using backward chaining and most-to-least intrusive prompting. The number of independent steps completed in the task analysis increased following training.     

Validation of the multiple language versions of the Hopkins Symptom Checklist-37 for refugee adolescents

The objective of this study is to provide preliminary psychometric properties of the Hopkins Symptom Checklist-37 (HSCL-37A) for refugee adolescents. The HSCL-37A is a modification of the well-known HSCL-25 and assesses symptoms of internalizing and externalizing problems that have been associated with reactions to trauma. Four independent heterogeneous samples (N=3890) of unaccompanied refugee minors, immigrants, and native Dutch and Belgian adolescents were assessed at school. The confirmative factor analyses, per language version, support the two-factor structure of internalizing and externalizing behavior. The total and subscales show good internal consistency and acceptable test-retest reliability in spite of the heterogeneous sample populations. The construct, content, and criterion validity of the HSCL-37A were also examined and found to be good. The findings of this study suggest that the HSCL-37A is a reliable and valid instrument to be used among culturally diverse refugee adolescents to assess emotional distress and maladaptive behaviors.     

The dynamics of empirically derived factors in the therapeutic relationship

The therapeutic relationship is the source of major concepts in psychoanalytic clinical theory. Such concepts as resistance, transference, countertransference, and the alliance are fundamental, even though there may be shifts in meaning between theoretical schools and clinical contexts. In the clinical psychoanalytic literature, disagreement exists over the nature of the alliance and its essential components. Empirical studies using reliable patient, therapist, and observer scales to assess the alliance demonstrate a correlation with psychotherapeutic gains. In the study reported here, thirteen patients were followed for 6 to 33 months of psychodynamic psychotherapy, during which time their views of the therapeutic relationship were assessed, and several experiential measures taken, all on a weekly basis. Statistical analyses reveal that the therapeutic relationship, as reflected in the patients' weekly responses to the St. Louis Therapeutic Relationship Rating Scale, has four distinct components: therapeutic alliance, resistance, transference love, and negative transference. On a week-by-week basis, the therapeutic alliance was the strongest predictor of improvement in patient-reported general adjustment, as reflected in such areas as self-esteem, positive affect, social relations, work productivity, satisfaction, and optimism. Time plots of the variables show the typical time course for the components of the therapeutic relationship, as well as for improvement on the experiential variables. Results indicate that the therapeutic alliance, transference, and resistance are central components of the psychotherapeutic relationship, which in turn predict the ongoing life experience of the patient.