Assessing learning and memory in pigs

In recent years, there has been a surge of interest in (mini) pigs (Sus scrofa) as species for cognitive research. A major reason for this is their physiological and anatomical similarity with humans. For example, pigs possess a well-developed, large brain. Assessment of the learning and memory functions of pigs is not only relevant to human research but also to animal welfare, given the nature of current farming practices and the demands they make on animal health and behavior. In this article, we review studies of pig cognition, focusing on the underlying processes and mechanisms, with a view to identifying. Our goal is to aid the selection of appropriate cognitive tasks for research into pig cognition. To this end, we formulated several basic criteria for pig cognition tests and then applied these criteria and knowledge about pig-specific sensorimotor abilities and behavior to evaluate the merits, drawbacks, and limitations of the different types of tests used to date. While behavioral studies using (mini) pigs have shown that this species can perform learning and memory tasks, and much has been learned about pig cognition, results have not been replicated or proven replicable because of the lack of validated, translational behavioral paradigms that are specially suited to tap specific aspects of pig cognition. We identified several promising types of tasks for use in studies of pig cognition, such as versatile spatial free-choice type tasks that allow the simultaneous measurement of several behavioral domains. The use of appropriate tasks will facilitate the collection of reliable and valid data on pig cognition.     

A twin study of spatial and non-spatial delayed response performance in middle age

Delayed alternation and object alternation are classic spatial and non-spatial delayed response tasks. We tested 632 middle-aged male veteran twins on variants of these tasks in order to compare test difficulty, measure their inter-correlation, test order effects, and estimate heritabilities (proportion of observed variance due to genetic influences). Non-spatial alternation (NSA), which may involve greater reliance on processing of subgoals, was significantly more difficult than spatial alternation (SA). Despite their similarities, NSA and SA scores were uncorrelated. NSA performance was worse when administered second; there was no SA order effect. NSA scores were modestly heritable (h(2)=.25; 26); SA was not. There was shared genetic variance between NSA scores and general intellectual ability (r(g)=.55; .67), but this also suggests genetic influences specific to NSA. Compared with findings from small, selected control samples, high "failure" rates in this community-based sample raise concerns about interpretation of brain dysfunction in elderly or patient samples.     

Internet-based treatment of social phobia: a randomized controlled trial comparing unguided with two types of guided self-help

Internet-based self-help for social phobia with minimal therapist support via email have shown efficacy in several controlled trials by independent research teams. The role and necessity of therapist guidance is, however, still largely unclear. The present study compared the benefits of a 10-week web-based unguided self-help treatment for social phobia with the same intervention complemented with minimal, although weekly, therapist support via email. Further, a third treatment arm was included, in which the level of support was flexibly stepped up, from no support to email or telephone contact, on demand of the participants. Eighty-one individuals meeting diagnostic criteria for social phobia were randomly assigned to one of the three conditions. Primary outcome measures were self-report measures of symptoms of social phobia. Secondary outcome measures included symptoms of depression, interpersonal problems, and general symptomatology. Measures were taken at baseline, post-treatment, and at 6-month follow-up. Data from a telephone-administered diagnostic interview conducted at post-treatment were also included. Results showed significant symptom reductions in all three treatment groups with large effect sizes for primary social phobia measures (Cohen’s d = 1.47) and for secondary outcome measures (d = 1.16). No substantial and significant between-groups effects were found on any of the measures (Cohen’s d = 00–.36). Moreover, no difference between the three conditions was found regarding diagnosis-free status, clinically significant change, dropout rates, or adherence measures such as lessons or exercises completed. These findings indicate that Internet-delivered treatment for social phobia is a promising treatment option, whether no support is provided or with two different types of therapist guidance.     

Relationships between personality characteristics of people who stutter and the impact of stuttering on everyday life

ObjectiveThis study investigates the association between the five-factor model of personality measured by the NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) and the Overall Assessment of the Speaker's Experience of Stuttering (OASES). The OASES measures the adverse impact of stuttering on a person's life.DesignParticipants in the present study were 112 persons who stutter from Germany.MethodsAll participants filled in both the NEO-FFI and the OASES questionnaires.ResultsResults revealed a strong positive correlation between the personality trait Neuroticism and scores on the OASES. Moreover, Extraversion was negatively correlated with the OASES scores.ConclusionsThe findings suggest that people with higher Neuroticism and lower Extraversion scores experience a greater impact of stuttering on their daily life. The results underscore the importance of considering personality as a potential moderator or mediator factor in future stuttering research and, potentially, also in treatment.Educational objectives: The reader will learn (a) about the different personality dimensions reflected by the NEO-FFI, (b) why it is important to consider the impact of stuttering on everyday life from the perspective of the people who stutter and (c) how personality is linked to the Overall Assessment of the Speaker's Experience of Stuttering (OASES).     

Opfer-überzeugungen

The public interest in ??new?? clinical symptoms is described exemplified by burnout, mobbing and trauma. In the background self-explanations by patients as well as interests of therapists can be recognized. Both can be understood as an expression of subconsciously reflected contemporary convictions. Post-traumatic stress syndrome and the sequelae of abuse, which are probably diagnosed too often in guideline correct psychotherapy, throw up questions on the appropriate therapy and possible injurious side effects. The social background to the psychotherapeutic fascination with trauma will be discussed.     

Differential effects of cognitive inhibition and intelligence on creativity

There are different conceptions about how cognitive inhibition is related to creativity. Creativity has either been associated with effective inhibition, or with disinhibition, or with an adaptive engagement of inhibition. In this study, we examined the relationship of cognitive inhibition, assessed by means of the random motor generation task, with different measures of creativity. We also analyzed whether this relation is mediated by intelligence. We generally found a positive correlation of inhibition and creativity measures. Moreover, latent variable analyses indicate that inhibition may primarily promote the fluency of ideas, whereas intelligence specifically promotes the originality of ideas. These findings support the notion that creative thought involves executive processes and may help to better understand the differential role of inhibition and intelligence in creativity.     

Langzeitergebnisse einer Funktionellen-Magnetresonanztomographie-Studie

In a controlled functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study the effect of psychodynamic short-term psychotherapy on cerebral activation of panic disorder patients was determined. In a linguistic go-no go paradigm behavioral measures and cerebral activation to affective word stimuli with threatening, neutral and positive content were assessed pretreatment and post-treatment in 9 patients with panic disorder. 18 healthy controls were scanned twice at the same intervals. In an additional long-term follow-up after approximately 3 years post-treatment the effect of brain activation changes during treatment on the long-term outcome of core symptoms (panic-related cognition and fear of body sensations) were determined. In accordance with the hypotheses increased limbic (hippocampus and amygdala) activation accompanied by low prefrontal activation to negative words were found. At treatment termination, panic-related symptoms had improved significantly and fronto-limbic activation patterns were normalized. Reduction of activation of the limbic system during treatment was predictive of a favorable long-term outcome. The results indicate that short-term psychodynamic treatment leads to changes in fronto-limbic networks, similar to previous findings on cognitive-behavioural treatment.     

Standard errors and confidence intervals in within-subjects designs: Generalizing Loftus and Masson (1994) and avoiding the biases of alternative accounts

Repeated measures designs are common in experimental psychology. Because of the correlational structure in these designs, the calculation and interpretation of confidence intervals is nontrivial. One solution was provided by Loftus and Masson (Psychonomic Bulletin & Review 1:476-490, 1994). This solution, although widely adopted, has the limitation of implying same-size confidence intervals for all factor levels, and therefore does not allow for the assessment of variance homogeneity assumptions (i.e., the circularity assumption, which is crucial for the repeated measures ANOVA). This limitation and the method's perceived complexity have sometimes led scientists to use a simplified variant, based on a per-subject normalization of the data (Bakeman & McArthur, Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, & Computers 28:584-589, 1996; Cousineau, Tutorials in Quantitative Methods for Psychology 1:42-45, 2005; Morey, Tutorials in Quantitative Methods for Psychology 4:61-64, 2008; Morrison & Weaver, Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, & Computers 27:52-56, 1995). We show that this normalization method leads to biased results and is uninformative with regard to circularity. Instead, we provide a simple, intuitive generalization of the Loftus and Masson method that allows for assessment of the circularity assumption.