Selective attention and search images in pigeons

In a visual search task, pigeons detected targets when pretrial visual cues or blocked trial sequences signaled the target's identity. Sequential priming was robust over a wide range of intertrial intervals, but visual priming was unstable when the delay between cue offset and display onset was varied. Larger target set sizes enhanced sequential, but not visual, priming. Sequential priming did not depend on display size over the range of relatively large displays used. However, ambiguously cued targets in small displays were detected more quickly than primed targets in large displays. These findings suggest that naturalistic selection biases, or "search images," may be attributable to sequential priming and that the common attentional mechanism has moderately selective properties.     

The enhancement of retention induced by vasopressin in mice may be mediated by an activation of central nicotinic cholinergic mechanisms.

Immediate post-training subcutaneous administration of lysine vasopressin (LVP, 0.003-1.00 microgram/kg) enhanced retention, whereas the vasopressin antagonist AAVP (0.01-0.30 microgram/kg) impaired it, in male Swiss mice tested 48 h after training in an inhibitory avoidance task. Both effects were dose-dependent. Neither LVP nor AAVP affected response latencies in mice not given the footshock on the training trial. The simultaneous administration of AAVP at a dose (0.01 microgram/kg) which had no effect on retention shifted the dose-response curve of LVP to the right. Nicotine (1.0-30.0 micrograms/kg, sc), a central nicotinic cholinergic agonist, also facilitated retention in a dose-related manner without affecting the retention performance of unshocked mice. The effect of nicotine was prevented by the central acting nicotinic cholinergic receptor antagonist mecamylamine (5 mg/kg, sc.). In contrast, neither hexamethonium (5 mg/kg, sc), a peripheral acting nicotinic receptor blocker, nor atropine (0.5 mg/kg, sc) or methylatropine (0.5 mg/kg, sc), two anticholinergic drugs which are known to act on muscarinic cholinergic receptors, prevented the effect of post-training nicotine. The effects of LVP and nicotine were time-dependent, suggesting that both treatments enhanced retention by influencing post-training processes involved in memory storage. Low doses of nicotine (1.50 microgram/kg, sc) or the central anticholinesterase physostigmine (35 micrograms/kg, sc) and LVP (0.003 microgram/kg, sc), which had no effect on retention when administered alone, produced a synergistic interaction when given together following training. The influence of LVP (0.03 microgram/kg, sc) on retention was prevented not only by AAVP (0.01 microgram/kg, sc) but also by mecamylamine (5 mg/kg, sc), whereas the effects of nicotine (10.0 micrograms/kg, sc) were prevented only by mecamylamine. These results suggest that the enhancement of retention induced by vasopressin is probably due to an activation of central nicotinic cholinergic mechanisms which are critical for memory formation.     

Scratching as a behavioral index of anxiety in macaque mothers.

The aim of this study was to assess the validity of the notion that anxiety influences maternal style in monkeys. To this end, we investigated the correlations between measures of the quality of mother-infant relationship and scratching, a behavior pattern that reflects a state of anxiety. The subjects were seven group-living macaque mothers and their infants observed during the first 12 weeks postpartum. Postpartum scratching by the mothers was positively correlated with both maternal possessiveness and maternal warmth, two composite measures of the quality of mother-infant relationship that reflect a possessive and attentive maternal style. Evaluation of the correlations between maternal rank and scratching before and after parturition indicated that interactions with their infants, not those with other group companions, were the main source of anxiety for the mothers. These results support the notion that anxiety influences maternal style in monkeys and suggest that studies aimed at investigating physiological and social correlates of maternal emotionality in nonhuman primates could use scratching as a useful and simple behavioral measure.     

Gender differences in health-related quality of life

In 1986 the life expectancy at birth was 71.3 years for males and 78.3 years for females--providing a 7-year advantage for women. Although women live longer, it has been reported that they paradoxically experience more physical and psychological illnesses. In this article, we estimate the expected well-years or quality-adjusted life years for men and women in the general population. The data were obtained in a random sample of 1,034 residents of San Diego. The well-life expectancy uses standard life expectancies with adjustments for quality of life. The well-life expectancy for men was 59.8 years; for women, it was 62.7 years. Thus, the quality adjustment had significantly more impact on women (15.6 years) than on men (11.5 years). Age-specific estimates of health-related quality of life suggested a male advantage before age 45 and a female advantage after age 45. The benefits of well-years of life as a public health statistic are discussed.     

Perceived benefits of marathon running in males and females

The differences in both perceived benefits and attitudes toward running between male and female runners, and between runners who classified themselves as competitive runners (CR) or recreational runners (RR), was the focus of this study. Four-hundred and two runners completed the Ten-Minute Survey for Runners within two weeks of completing a marathon. RR, more so than CR, perceived greater benefits from running. However, CR expressed a more positive attitude toward running and its role in their lives than did RR. Men perceived running to be more beneficial to them than women. However, women, more so than men, felt running had a positive effect on self-image and their lives were richer because of running. Future research concerns on the effects of competition on the lives of women are explored.     

The role of cosmetics in attributions about sexual harassment

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of cosmetics use on attributions concerning the likelihood of provoking sexual harassment and of being sexually harassed. Subjects were 85 female and 76 male undergraduate volunteers. The study was a 3×2 between-subjects design with three levels of cosmetics use (heavy, moderate, no cosmetics) and two levels of sex of subject (male, female). Each subject viewed one of three colored photographs of a model wearing either heavy, moderate, or no cosmetics, and then indicated how likely the model was to provoke sexual harassment and to be sexually harassed. Data were analyzed using analyses of variance and the Newman-Keuls test. When the model wore heavy cosmetics, she was rated as more likely to provoke sexual harassment than when she wore moderate cosmetics. Similarly, when the model wore moderate cosmetics, she was rated as significantly more likely to provoke sexual harassment than when she was not wearing cosmetics. When the model wore either heavy or moderate cosmetics, she was also rated as more likely to be sexually harassed than when she did not wear cosmetics. In addition, male subjects rated the model as more likely to provoke and to be sexually harassed than did female subjects. Results are discussed in terms of sex role spillover.     

Suicidal behavior in Italy: data, trends and guidelines for a suicide intervention/prevention policy.

Even though in Italy, as in the majority of Mediterranean countries, the increase in suicide rates is not among the highest in Europe, between 1969 and 1989 it showed a sharp upswing (+43% among males and +31% among females). In terms of geographical differences, the regions with the highest suicide rate are the northern ones (up to twice the national average). The age groups with the highest suicide risk are those over 74 years (in 1989 the rate among males over 65 was the highest of all: 31.3 per 100,000). The differences in the between-sexes distribution show that among females over 65 years old the suicide rate rose by 70% between 1974 and 1989, versus 77% for males of the same age. The preliminary epidemiological results of one of two Italian centers are presented. These centers are collaborating with the WHO/EURO Multicenter Study on Parasuicide; parasuicide rates are higher for females than for males (55.9 per 100,000, as against 38.1 for males), while the age group at highest risk is seen to be young women (15-24 years), with a specific rate of 115.6.     

An investigation into the relationships between gender and language

The present investigation focused upon the impact of gender and various powerful and less powerful linguistic features on the communication of unfamiliar male and female college students. Same-sex and mixed-sex dyads were recorded as they engaged in discussions regarding suggestions for a bogus freshman orientation booklet. Although few gender differences were found, the result of a factor analysis yielded three factors: questions, suggestions, and process variables. These factors are consistent with a power perspective in the use of various linguistic features. However, the present findings suggest that gender and power alone cannot explain differences in communication styles. Rather, the results suggest the need to consider other aspects of the speaker to explain differences that occur in the use of language.     

Effect of intrauterine position and social density on age of first reproduction in wild-type female house mice (Mus musculus)

In laboratory strains of mice, reproductive maturation is influenced by both the fetal and the peripubertal social environments experienced by females. Intrauterine position (IUP) for female fetuses is identified by the number of adjacent males; where 0M have zero, 1M have one, and 2M have two male neighbors. We sought to confirm, using wild-type female house mice (Mus musculus), the previous finding in the CF-1 strain of laboratory mouse that males prefer 0M over 2M females as mates. We recorded the age at first reproduction for females of known IUP housed either individually with a male or in a group of 6 females and a male. In neither housing condition were there significant differences in age of first reproduction among females of different IUPs, but 0M females that were group housed had perforate vaginas at an earlier age than other group-housed females. Mean (+/- SE) age at first reproduction was 58.1 (+/- 3.3) for paired and 126.6 (+/- 5.1) for group-housed females. The reproductive suppression observed in the grouped females was probably due to the interaction of inhibitory urinary chemosignals, low body weights, and female dominance hierarchies.