Factor analysis of attitudes toward abortion.

700 Ss rated the concept abortion on a series of bipolar adjectives. Factor analysis of the ratings suggested (a) that Ss judged the concept along four orthogonal dimensions, immoral-repelling, cruel-destructive, emotional-serious, and rational-impulsive and (b) that males and females had similar factor structures. Polarity analysis showed that abortion was seen as immoral, repelling, bad, cruel, destructive, ugly, sinful, emotional, serious, rational and impulsive. Although this is highly unfavorable compared to the results of previous research, it appears to represent a liberal trend.     

Youth with Chronic Pain and Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS): Treatment Mediators of Improvement in Functional Disability

Intensive pain rehabilitation programs are effective in increasing functioning for youth with chronic pain (CP). However, the utility of such programs for youth with CP and co-morbid postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) is rarely examined. In addition, studies examining mediators of treatment for CP are sparse. This paper compares treatment outcomes for youth with CP (n?=?117) and youth with CP?+?POTS (n?=?118). Additionally, depression and pain catastrophizing were tested as potential mediators of treatment effects. Significant treatment improvements were found for functional disability, depression, pain catastrophizing, and perceived pain intensity but with no differences between groups. Improvements in depressed mood, pain catastrophizing (helplessness subscale), and pain severity partially mediated functioning improvement. Pain severity was not a significant mediator in the CP?+?POTS group. We concluded that depression and pain catastrophizing, especially the helplessness domain, can impact functioning improvement in adolescents with CP and POTS and are particularly important to target in treatment.     

University Professor Lecture: Near-Death Experiences: The Stories They Tell

I argue that we can interpret the stories told by near-death experiences (NDEs) in a naturalistic way. Thus, the profound significance of NDEs need not come from a supernaturalistic conception of them, according to which in an NDE the individual is in touch with a heavenly realm. We can respect the sincerity of NDE reports, but we can capture their meaning in a naturalistic framework.     

Transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (tVNS) enhances conflict-triggered adjustment of cognitive control

Response conflicts play a prominent role in the flexible adaptation of behavior as they represent context-signals that indicate the necessity for the recruitment of cognitive control. Previous studies have highlighted the functional roles of the affectively aversive and arousing quality of the conflict signal in triggering the adaptation process. To further test this potential link with arousal, participants performed a response conflict task in two separate sessions with either transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (tVNS), which is assumed to activate the locus coeruleus-noradrenaline (LC-NE) system, or with neutral sham stimulation. In both sessions the N2 and P3 event-related potentials (ERP) were assessed. In line with previous findings, conflict interference, the N2 and P3 amplitude were reduced after conflict. Most importantly, this adaptation to conflict was enhanced under tVNS compared to sham stimulation for conflict interference and the N2 amplitude. No effect of tVNS on the P3 component was found. These findings suggest that tVNS increases behavioral and electrophysiological markers of adaptation to conflict. Results are discussed in the context of the potentially underlying LC-NE and other neuromodulatory (e.g., GABA) systems. The present findings add important pieces to the understanding of the neurophysiological mechanisms of conflict-triggered adjustment of cognitive control.     

Regulation of low-threshold afferent activity may contribute to short-term habituation in Aplysia californica

The goal of this study was to characterize the contribution of a population of low-threshold mechanoreceptors to short-term habituation of siphon-elicited reflex responses in Aplysia californica. Since the location of their somata is unknown, we refer to them as the Unidentified Low-Threshold mechanoreceptors (ULTs). The ULTs operate in parallel to the higher-threshold and well-characterized LE sensory neurons, yet little is known regarding their contribution to behavioral plasticity. Using extracellular recordings from the siphon nerve, we found that habituation training that favors ULT activation resulted in a significant decrease in afferent activity at training intervals up to 1 min per stimulus (1 min ISI). To determine how this reduction impacts responses at other sites of the reflex network, we used intracellular recordings to measure training-induced changes in either L29 excitatory interneurons or LFS siphon motor neurons. With a 30s ISI, changes at both locations were training site-specific and matched the rate of change of afferent activity, implicating regulated sensory activity as a primary mechanism. With a shorter training interval (1s ISI), site-specificity of training was not observed in the L29s, but was still preserved in the motor neurons. For both, the rate of change during training was faster than the rate of change of afferent activity. Taken together, we conclude that regulation of low-threshold sensory neuron activity can play a significant role in short-term habituation, but other network processes may be recruited at more rapid training intervals.     

Brief des herausgebers

Nachruf

Eine herausragende Pers?nlichkeit der Wiener Psychiatrie ist nicht mehr