New approaches to demystifying insight

After a person has become stuck on a problem, they sometimes achieve a clear and sudden solution through insight--the so-called Aha! experience. Because of its distinctive experience, the origins and characteristics of insight have received considerable attention historically in psychological research. However, despite considerable progress in characterizing insight, the underlying mechanisms remain mysterious. We argue that research on insight could be greatly advanced by supplementing traditional insight research, which depends on a few complex problems, with paradigms common in other domains of cognitive science. We describe a large set of mini-insight problems to which multiple methods can be applied, together with subjective reports to identify insight problem-solving. Behavioral priming and neuroimaging methods are providing evidence about what, where, and how neural activity occurs during insight. Such evidence constrains theories of component processes, and will help to demystify insight.     

Dimensions of impulsivity and aggression associated with suicide attempts among bipolar patients: a preliminary study

Impulsivity and hostility are often thought to be interrelated among depressed patients with suicidal behavior, but few studies have examined this relationship empirically. In this study, we assessed trait impulsivity and hostility among 52 DSM-IV bipolar subjects with and without histories of suicide attempts. Impulsivity and hostility were correlated among attempters (r = .41, p = .03) but not non-attempters (r = .22, p = .28). As compared to non-attempters, attempters had significantly higher levels of overall hostility, more extensive subcomponents of hostility, and a trend toward higher overall impulsivity. Associations between lifetime suicide attempts and overall hostility were significant while controlling for current depression severity and lifetime illness duration. Aggression and impulsivity appear linked among bipolar patients with lifetime suicide attempts but may be independent constructs among non-attempters. The presence of both factors may elevate risk for suicidal behavior.     

Perceiving distance: a role of effort and intent

Perceiving egocentric distance is not only a function of the optical variables to which it relates, but also a function of people's current physiological potential to perform intended actions. In a set of experiments, we showed that, as the effort associated with walking increases, perceived distance increases if the perceiver intends to walk the extent, but not if the perceiver intends to throw. Conversely, as the effort associated with throwing increases, perceived distance increases if people intend to throw to the target, but not if they intend to walk. Perceiving distance combines the geometry of the world with our behavior goals and the potential of our body to achieve these goals.     

Weathering the storm: children's long-term recall of Hurricane Andrew

Children who experienced a highly stressful natural disaster, Hurricane Andrew, were interviewed within a few months of the event, when they were 3-4 years old, and again 6 years later, when they were 9-10 years old. Children were grouped into low, moderate, or high stress groups depending on the severity of the experienced storm. All children were able to recall this event in vivid detail 6 years later. In fact, children reported over twice as many propositions at the second interview as at the first. At the initial interview, children in the high stress group reported less information than children in the moderate stress group, but 6 years later, children in all three stress groups reported similar amounts of information. However children in the high stress group needed more questions and prompts than children in the other stress groups. Yet children in the high stress group also reported more consistent information between the two interviews, especially about the storm, than children in the other stress groups. Implications for children's developing memory of stressful events are discussed.     

Sleep, dreams, and memory consolidation: the role of the stress hormone cortisol

We discuss the relationship between sleep, dreams, and memory, proposing that the content of dreams reflects aspects of memory consolidation taking place during the different stages of sleep. Although we acknowledge the likely involvement of various neuromodulators in these phenomena, we focus on the hormone cortisol, which is known to exert influence on many of the brain systems involved in memory. The concentration of cortisol escalates over the course of the night's sleep, in ways that we propose can help explain the changing nature of dreams across the sleep cycle.     

Transition planning and recidivism among mentally ill juvenile offenders

OBJECTIVES: To determine the extent to which transition planning and community service would predict lower levels of recidivism among mentally ill juvenile offenders. DESIGN: Review of legal, medical and social service records including examination of 3-month period following community release. PARTICIPANTS: Juvenile offenders incarcerated for 6 months or more (N = 44) transitioning to community. MEASURES: Child and Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale (CAFAS), sum of different documented pre- and post-release discharge planning contacts, documented community service contacts. OUTCOMES: Re-offense during the first year post-release. RESULTS: Documented community service contacts in the 3 months following discharge were rare for mental health (20.5%), substance abuse (38.6%), financial assistance (29.5%), and school placement (34.1%). The average number of different pre-release and post-release discharge planning contacts was also low, M(SD)=1.86(1.68) and M(SD)= 2.34(1.71) respectively. Post-release discharge planning and the receipt of financial assistance and mental health services were all associated with lower levels of reoffending. CONCLUSIONS: Community transition planning, including the coordination and provision of community services, is an essential component of community reintegration for juvenile offenders and is associated with lower rates of recidivism during the first year post-discharge.     

Trauma histories and attachment styles of members of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies

The study is focused on the training, demographics, perceived emotional and physical health, past traumatic experience histories, and attachment styles of mental health professionals in the field of trauma (members of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies). While the data set is limited by a low response rate of 20%, the uniqueness of the sample and distinctive themes yield insight into the experience of trauma and its association with attachment style.     

Shyness: relationship to social phobia and other psychiatric disorders

The relationship between shyness, social phobia and other psychiatric disorders was examined. The prevalence of social phobia was significantly higher among shy persons (18%) compared with non-shy persons (3%). However, the majority of shy individuals (82%) were not socially phobic. A significant and positive correlation was found between the severity of shyness and the presence of social phobia, but the data suggest that social phobia is not merely severe shyness. Social phobia was also positively and moderately correlated with introversion and neuroticism. Thus, shy persons with social phobia were shyer, more introverted, and more neurotic than other shy people, but none of these factors was sufficient to distinguish shy persons with social phobia from those without social phobia. The proportion of the shy group with psychiatric diagnoses other than social phobia was significantly higher than among the non-shy group, indicating that various diagnostic categories are prominent among the shy. The results are discussed in terms of the overlap in shyness and social phobia and the relationship of shyness to other psychiatric diagnoses and personality dimensions.