Working memory predicts the rejection of false memories

The relationship between working memory capacity (WMC) and false memories in the memory conjunction paradigm was explored. Previous research using other paradigms has shown that individuals high in WMC are not as likely to experience false memories as low-WMC individuals, the explanation being that high-WMC individuals are better able to engage in source monitoring. In the memory conjunction paradigm participants are presented at study with parent words (e.g., eyeglasses, whiplash). At test, in addition to being presented with targets and foils, participants are presented with lures that are composed of previously studied features (e.g., eyelash). It was found that high-WMC individuals had lower levels of false recognition than low-WMC individuals. Furthermore, recall-to-reject responses were analysed (e.g., “I know I didn't see eyelash because I remember seeing eyeglasses”) and it was found that high-WMC individuals were more likely to utilise this memory editing strategy, providing direct evidence that one reason that high-WMC individuals are not as prone to false memories is because they are better able to engage in source monitoring.     

Group cognitive-behavioral therapy for anxiety in a clinic setting: does child involvement predict outcome?

The current study examined the relationship between child involvement and treatment outcome in a group cognitive–behavioral treatment (GCBT) program for children with anxiety, using an adapted version of the Child Involvement Rating Scale (CIRS). Thirty-four children with a primary diagnosis of an anxiety disorder, referred for outpatient treatment at a hospital, and their parents participated in a manualized 12-session GCBT program. The Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children (MASC), administered at pretreatment, posttreatment, and at 4-month follow-up, served as the outcome measure. The psychometric properties of the adapted CIRS were good. Early involvement (EI) was calculated as the average score from Sessions 1 to 6 and late involvement (LI), the average score from Sessions 7 to 12. EI predicted lower MASC scores at posttreatment, after controlling for pretreatment MASC scores and for LI, B = – 1.05, t(3) = – 2.34, p < .05. EI did not predict outcomes at follow-up. Results were replicated using the original CIRS measure. Exploratory analyses suggested that the relationship between LI and treatment outcomes was moderated by medication. Involvement in therapy prior to exposures might be an important predictor of posttreatment outcomes in GCBT in a community setting.     

The sleeping brain and the neural basis of emotions

In addition to active wake, emotions are generated and experienced in a variety of functionally different states such as those of sleep, during which external stimulation and cognitive control are lacking. The neural basis of emotions can be specified by regarding the multitude of emotion-related brain states, as well as the distinct neuro- and psychodynamic stages (generation and regulation) of emotional experience.     

Unraveling the mystery of Brazilian jeitinho: a cultural exploration of social norms

Two studies explore the structure and psychological makeup of jeitinho, a Brazilian indigenous construct associated with problem-solving strategies in strong hierarchies. Study 1 used a scenario approach with nonstudent participants and demonstrated that jeitinho can be described by a three-dimensional structure: corruption, creativity, and social norm breaking. Study 2 used individual and social norm scenarios in nonstudent samples and demonstrated that moral leniency is associated with more corruption and social norm breaking. Furthermore, only in the personal but not the social norm condition was greater social dominance orientation associated with more corruption and social norm breaking. Jeitinho is not a monolitical construct, but it is a complex sociocultural strategy that has distinct functional components at the personal and normative levels. Theoretical advances in the understanding of social norms and indigenous psychology by examining both culture-specific and general social-psychological processes are outlined.     

Sex-role flexibility,locus of control,and occupational status

The present study looked at the relationship between occupational status (supervisory vs. nonsupervisory positions) and locus of control and androgyny, and between locus of control and masculinity and femininity. On the whole, individuals employed in supervisory leadership positions were more androgynous and obtained more internal locus of control scores. Moreover, most women managers were androgynous, while male managers were either androgynous or masculine sex typed. Masculinity correlated positively with internal locus of control, but femininity in and of itself was not found to be relevant in predicting locus of control. Implications for vocational counseling for women as well as directions for future research are discussed.     

Effects of victim gender and physical vs. psychological trauma/injury on observers' perceptions of sexual assault and its aftereffects

Researchers have examined many underlying attitudes toward rape. Studies have focused on female victims while an increasing number of reported male rape victims has been overlooked. This study compared observers' attribution of guilt toward rape victims and their rapists. It also specified the trauma inflicted by either physical or psychological concomitants of rape victimization and compared the effect of such information on both blame and expectation of recovery. Participants were university students, primarily Caucasian, with mean ages 20.56 and 21.21 years for males and females, respectively. Female victims were judged more harshly than male victims. Length of imprisonment considered appropriate for guilty assailants was found to be greater when injury was done to one's own gender. Recovery was expected to be a lengthy process. Implications for social gender stereotyping and public attitudes concerning aftereffects of traumatic stress are discussed.

     

Family interventions in psychosis: a scale to measure therapist adherence

The efficacy of family interventions in psychosis is well documented. UK and USA schizophrenia treatment guidelines advocate the practice of family interventions within routine clinical services. However, less attention has been paid to the study of treatment fidelity and the tools used in its assessment. This study reports the inter-rater reliability of a new scale: Family Intervention in Psychosis-Adherence Scale (FIPAS). This measure is designed to assess therapist adherence to the Kuipers et al . (2002) family intervention in psychosis treatment manual. Reliability ratings were based on a sample of thirteen audiotapes drawn from a randomized controlled trial of family intervention. The results indicated that the majority of items of the FIPAS had acceptable levels of inter-rater reliability. The findings are discussed in terms of their implications for the training and monitoring of the effectiveness of practitioners for family interventions in psychosis.     

Olfactory fear conditioning paradigm in rats: Effects of midazolam,propranolol or scopolamine

In rodents, fear conditioned responses are more pronounced toward olfactory stimulus, since olfaction is a dominant sense in these subjects. The present study was outlined to investigate if the association between coffee odor (CS1) and electrical footshock (US) would be an effective model for the study of fear-induced behavior and whether compounds used in humans for emotional-related disorders such as midazolam, propranolol, or scopolamine, applied during the different stages of fear conditioning (acquisition, consolidation and expression), affect the defensive responses to both, the olfactory CS1, and the context (CS2) where the CS1 had been presented (second order conditioning). The results revealed that five pairings between coffee odor (CS1) and electrical footshock (US) were able to elicit consistent defensive responses and a second order conditioning to the context (CS2). Midazolam (0.375–0.5 mg/kg; i.p.) treatment was able to interfere with the CS1–US association and with the consolidation of the aversive information. The propranolol (5–10 mg/kg; i.p.) treatment interfered with the CS1–US association, with the retention of fear memory and with the CS1–CS2 association. Propranolol also attenuated the expression of conditioned fear responses when applied before the CS1 test session. Scopolamine (0.6–1.2 mg/kg; i.p.) treatment impaired the acquisition of CS1–US and CS1–CS2 associations, and also disrupted the expression of conditioned fear responses when injected prior to the CS1 test session. These findings have pointed out the usefulness for the olfactory fear conditioning paradigm to investigate drug effects on the acquisition, consolidation and expression of fear conditioned responses.     

Emotional and sexual jealousy as a function of sex and sexual orientation in a Brazilian sample

The goal of the present study was to compare the relative distress of homosexual and heterosexual Brazilian men and women on scenarios in which they imagined their partners sexually or emotionally involved with another person, using a forced-choice paradigm and continuous measures. Participants were 68 heterosexual men, 72 heterosexual women, 42 homosexual men, and 35 homosexual women. On the forced-choice questions heterosexual men (39 on one question and 37 on the other) were more upset than their female counterparts (21 on one question and 15 on the other) by scenarios of sexual infidelity than those of emotional infidelity. On questions using continuous measures no significant difference was found between pleasurable sex and attachment scenarios for heterosexual women or heterosexual men. On the highly upsetting scenarios heterosexual men discriminated between flirting and both pleasurable sex and attachment scenarios, being less disturbed by the former. In contrast, heterosexual women were equally distressed by the three scenarios. Scores for the homosexual men and homosexual women fell in between those of the heterosexual men and heterosexual women and did not show a clear cut preference for the sexual infidelity or the emotional alternative on the forced-choice paradigm. However, on the continuous measures of jealousy homosexuals resembled heterosexuals of the opposite sex. There was no evidence that jealousy would be less intense among homosexuals although reproductive outcomes were not at risk.     

Clinical and anatomical correlates of apraxia of speech

In a previous study (Dronkers, 1996), stroke patients identified as having apraxia of speech (AOS), an articulatory disorder, were found to have damage to the left superior precentral gyrus of the insula (SPGI). The present study sought (1) to characterize the performance of patients with AOS on a classic motor speech evaluation, and (2) to examine whether severity of AOS was influenced by the extent of the lesion. Videotaped speech evaluations of stroke patients with and without AOS were reviewed by two speech-language pathologists and independently scored. Results indicated that patients with AOS made the most errors on tasks requiring the coordination of complex, but not simple, articulatory movements. Patients scored lowest on the repetition of multisyllabic words and sentences that required immediate shifting between place and manner of articulation and rapid coordination of the lips, tongue, velum, and larynx. Last, all patients with AOS had lesions in the SPGI, whereas patients without apraxia of speech did not. Additional involvement of neighboring brain areas was associated with more severe forms of both AOS as well as language deficits, such as aphasia.