An Examination of the Glover Numbing Scale: Expanding the Content Validity of Posttraumatic Numbing

Quantification of posttraumatic numbing (PTN) has largely been limited to the assessment of a small number of items taken directly from the DSM. The current study takes steps to expand the content validity of PTN through examination of the Glover Numbing Scale (GNS), one of the few available measures specific to PTN. Specifically, the factor structure of the GNS and its convergence with DSM-based indices of PTN were examined in a sample of motor vehicle accident survivors (MVA; N = 288). Whereas the 5-factor structure originally proposed by Glover et al. Anxiety 1:70–79 (1994) evidenced a poor fit to the sample data, exploratory analysis suggested a 1-factor structure underlying data collected from the sample. Furthermore, GNS scores derived from this solution evidenced a strong convergent relationship with DSM-based PTN. These data suggest that alternative indicators contained within the GNS may be used to expand current conceptualizations of PTN.

Race Bias Tracks Conception Risk Across the Menstrual Cycle

ABSTRACT— Although a considerable body of research explores alterations in women's mating-relevant preferences across the menstrual cycle, investigators have yet to examine the potential for the menstrual cycle to influence intergroup attitudes. We examined the effects of changes in conception risk across the menstrual cycle on intergroup bias and found that increased conception risk was positively associated with several measures of race bias. This association was particularly strong when perceived vulnerability to sexual coercion was high. Our findings highlight the potential for hypotheses informed by an evolutionary perspective to generate new knowledge about current social problems—an avenue that may lead to new predictions in the study of intergroup relations.     

The development of stimulus control over tics: A potential explanation for contextually-based variability in the symptoms of Tourette syndrome

Research has demonstrated that providing reinforcement for tic-free intervals can decrease tic frequency in controlled analogue settings. The aim of the current study was to determine whether reinforcement could be used to create stimulus control over tic expression. Ten children with chronic tic disorders (including Tourette syndrome) completed four discrimination training sessions. Each session consisted of three exposures to each of three, 5 min conditions presented in a random order. In one condition, participants were reinforced for tic absence on a 10-s fixed interval schedule in the presence of a purple light. In a second condition, participants were instructed to suppress their tics, but were not reinforced for doing so in the presence of an orange light. In a third condition, participants were instructed not to suppress their tics in the presence of two non-illuminated lights. Confirming findings from other studies, results showed that reinforcing tic suppression reduced tic frequency to a greater extent than only providing instructions to suppress. To test for stimulus control, a fifth session was conducted following the aforementioned discrimination training sessions. The fifth session consisted of three exposures to each of three 5 min conditions presented in a random order. In one condition, a purple light was illuminated. In a second condition, an orange light was illuminated. In a third condition, neither light was illuminated. Across all three conditions, instructions to suppress (or not suppress) tics were not provided, and reinforcers for successful suppression were not delivered. Results indicated that in the presence of the purple light, tics were significantly lower than when neither light was illuminated. These findings provide preliminary support for the idea that a history of differential reinforcement in various contexts may play a role explaining variability in tic symptom expression.     

Multidimensional body image comparisons among patients with eating disorders,body dysmorphic disorder,and clinical controls: A multisite study

Body image disturbance is considered a core characteristic of eating disorders and body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), however its definition has been unclear within the literature. This study examined the multidimensional nature of body image functioning among individuals with either anorexia nervosa (AN; n = 35), bulimia nervosa (BN; n = 26), or BDD (n = 56), relative to female (n = 34) and male (n = 36) psychiatric controls. Participants were recruited from 10 treatment centers in the United States and England and completed psychometrically validated and standardized self-report measures of body image. Overall, the AN, BN, and BDD groups were characterized by significantly elevated disturbances in most body image dimensions relative to their gender-matched clinical controls. There was variability, however, in the comparisons among the three groups of interest, including foci of body dissatisfaction and body image coping patterns. On omnibus indices of body image disturbance and body image quality of life, patients with BDD reported more body image impairment than those with eating disorders. Although AN, BN, and BDD are characterized by body image disturbances, similar and partially distinctive cognitive, behavioral, and emotional elements of body image functioning exist among these groups. The study's empirical and clinical implications are considered.     

On the Relation between Institutional Statuses and Technical Artifacts: A Proposed Taxonomy of Social Kinds

Technical artifacts do not seem particularly continuous with institutional statuses. If statuses are defined in terms of their constitutive rules, as Searle maintains, then disassociation is always possible – someone or something can satisfy those rules without being able to realize the functional effects that are associated with that status. The gap between technical artifacts and Searlean statuses suggests the possibility of an additional social kind, which I call, following Muhammad Ali Khalidi, a ‘real social kind’. However, the placement of real social kinds between technical artifacts and statuses recommends a reconfiguration of Khalidi’s most abstract characterization of the notion. This reconfiguration also lends support to his surprising claim that money is a real social kind.     

The effects of incubation temperature on the development of the cortical forebrain in a lizard

The embryos of egg-laying species are exposed to variable thermal regimes, which can influence not only the resultant hatchling’s morphology (e.g., size, sex) and performance (e.g., locomotor speed), but also its cognitive performance (learning ability). To clarify the proximate basis for this latter effect, we incubated eggs of the scincid lizard Bassiana duperreyi under simulated ‘hot’ and ‘cold’ natural nest temperatures to examine the effect of incubation temperature on the structure of the telencephalon region of the forebrain. Hatchlings from low-temperature incubation had larger telencephalons (both in absolute terms and relative to body size) and larger neurons in their medial cortices, whereas the medial cortices of hatchlings from high-temperature incubation had fewer neurons overall, but greater neuronal density, and more neurons in certain areas. These temperature-induced differences in B. duperreyi forebrain development are consistent with (and may explain) the disparities in learning ability between hatchlings from our two incubation treatments. The phenotypic plasticity of lizard telencephalon anatomy in response to incubation temperature presents exciting opportunities for studies on the evolutionary and developmental determinants of intelligence in vertebrates, but also offers a cautionary tale. Global climate changes, wrought by anthropogenic activities, may directly modify brain structure in reptiles.     

Sensorimotor simulation and emotion processing: Impairing facial action increases semantic retrieval demands

Sensorimotor models suggest that understanding the emotional content of a face recruits a simulation process in which a viewer partially reproduces the facial expression in their own sensorimotor system. An important prediction of these models is that disrupting simulation should make emotion recognition more difficult. Here we used electroencephalogram (EEG) and facial electromyogram (EMG) to investigate how interfering with sensorimotor signals from the face influences the real-time processing of emotional faces. EEG and EMG were recorded as healthy adults viewed emotional faces and rated their valence. During control blocks, participants held a conjoined pair of chopsticks loosely between their lips. During interference blocks, participants held the chopsticks horizontally between their teeth and lips to generate motor noise on the lower part of the face. This noise was confirmed by EMG at the zygomaticus. Analysis of EEG indicated that faces expressing happiness or disgust—lower face expressions—elicited larger amplitude N400 when they were presented during the interference than the control blocks, suggesting interference led to greater semantic retrieval demands. The selective impact of facial motor interference on the brain response to lower face expressions supports sensorimotor models of emotion understanding.     

The efficacy of the Microsoft Kinect<Superscript>TM</Superscript> to assess human bimanual coordination

The Microsoft Kinect has been used in studies examining posture and gait. Despite the advantages of portability and low cost, this device has not been used to assess interlimb coordination. Fundamental insights into movement control, variability, health, and functional status can be gained by examining coordination patterns. In this study, we investigated the efficacy of the Microsoft Kinect to capture bimanual coordination relative to a research-grade motion capture system. Twenty-four healthy adults performed coordinated hand movements in two patterns (in-phase and antiphase) at eight movement frequencies (1.00–3.33 Hz). Continuous relative phase (CRP) and discrete relative phase (DRP) were used to quantify the means (mCRP and mDRP) and variability (sdCRP and sdDRP) of coordination patterns. Between-device agreement was assessed using Bland–Altman bias with 95 % limits of agreement, concordance correlation coefficients (absolute agreement), and Pearson correlation coefficients (relative agreement). Modest-to-excellent relative and absolute agreements were found for mCRP in all conditions. However, mDRP showed poor agreement for the in-phase pattern at low frequencies, due to large between-device differences in a subset of participants. By contrast, poor absolute agreement was observed for both sdCRP and sdDRP, while relative agreement ranged from poor to excellent. Overall, the Kinect captures the macroscopic patterns of bimanual coordination better than coordination variability.