Reducing self-control by weakening belief in free will

Believing in free will may arise from a biological need for control. People induced to disbelieve in free will show impulsive and antisocial tendencies, suggesting a reduction of the willingness to exert self-control. We investigated whether undermining free will affects two aspects of self-control: intentional inhibition and perceived self-control. We exposed participants either to anti-free will or to neutral messages. The two groups (no-free will and control) then performed a task that required self-control to inhibit a prepotent response. No-free will participants showed less intentional inhibitions than controls, suggesting a reduction of self-control. We assessed perceived self-control by asking participants whether the response resulted from a deliberate intention or from an impulsive reaction. Perceived self-control was lower in the no-free will group than in control group. Our findings show that undermining free will can degrade self-control and provide insights into how disbelieving in free will leads to antisocial tendencies.     

Construct validity of the Anxiety Sensitivity Index-3 in clinical samples

Using two clinical samples of patients, the presented studies examined the construct validity of the recently revised Anxiety Sensitivity Index-3 (ASI-3). Confirmatory factor analyses established a clear three-factor structure that corresponds to the postulated subdivision of the construct into correlated somatic, social, and cognitive components. Participants with different primary clinical diagnoses differed from each other on the ASI-3 subscales in theoretically meaningful ways. Specifically, the ASI-3 successfully discriminated patients with anxiety disorders from patients with nonanxiety disorders. Moreover, patients with panic disorder or agoraphobia manifested more somatic concerns than patients with other anxiety disorders and patients with nonanxiety disorders. Finally, correlations of the ASI-3 scales with other measures of clinical symptoms and negative affect substantiated convergent and discriminant validity. Substantial positive correlations were found between the ASI-3 Somatic Concerns and body vigilance, between Social Concerns and fear of negative evaluation and socially inhibited behavior, and between Cognitive Concerns and depression symptoms, anxiety, fear of negative evaluation, and subjective complaints. Moreover, Social Concerns correlated negatively with dominant and intrusive behavior. Results are discussed with respect to the contribution of the ASI-3 to the assessment of anxiety-related disorders.     

Factor structure and item analysis of the yale food addiction scale in obese candidates for bariatric surgery

Converging research suggests phenomenological and neurobiological similarities between excessive food consumption and addictive behaviour in substance dependence. Recently, the Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS) has been proposed for the assessment of addictive eating behaviour. The German version of the YFAS was administered to obese individuals seeking bariatric surgery (N?=?96). Factor structure, internal consistency, and item statistics were analysed. Forty participants (41.70%) received a food addiction diagnosis. The one-factorial structure of the YFAS, which has been found in non-clinical samples, could be confirmed. All but three items had factor loadings >.50. Internal consistency was α?=?.82. Item analysis revealed that items related to unsuccessful attempts to cut down and consumption despite physical and emotional problems were endorsed by the majority of participants. Findings support the use of the YFAS in clinical populations, while applicability of some items differs between clinical and non-clinical samples. Copyright ? 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association.     

Translating intentions into sunscreen use: an interaction of self-efficacy and appearance norms

The study examines whether self-efficacy mediates between intention and behavior, and whether appearance norms and self-efficacy are additive or synergistic predictors of sunscreen use. At two measurement points in time, 14 weeks apart, 154 individuals responded to an online questionnaire. Moderated mediation was tested by hierarchical regression analyses. Self-efficacy mediated the intention-behavior relationship, whereas appearance norms emerged as a moderator of the self-efficacy-sunscreen use relationship. The model accounted for 22% of the behavior variance at time 2. For individuals who believe that they would look more attractive with a tan, self-efficacy did not have a strong effect on behavior. Thus, for skin-protection motivation to become effective, self-efficacy is needed in conjunction with less positive appearance norms. Implications for public health promotion and mass media sunscreen use campaigns are discussed.     

Lifespan differences in nonlinear dynamics during rest and auditory oddball performance

Electroencephalographic recordings (EEG) were used to assess age-associated differences in nonlinear brain dynamics during both rest and auditory oddball performance in children aged 9.0-12.8 years, younger adults, and older adults. We computed nonlinear coupling dynamics and dimensional complexity, and also determined spectral alpha power as an indicator of cortical reactivity. During rest, both nonlinear coupling and spectral alpha power decreased with age, whereas dimensional complexity increased. In contrast, when attending to the deviant stimulus, nonlinear coupling increased with age, and complexity decreased. Correlational analyses showed that nonlinear measures assessed during auditory oddball performance were reliably related to an independently assessed measure of perceptual speed. We conclude that cortical dynamics during rest and stimulus processing undergo substantial reorganization from childhood to old age, and propose that lifespan age differences in nonlinear dynamics during stimulus processing reflect lifespan changes in the functional organization of neuronal cell assemblies.     

The use of fruiting synchrony by foraging mangabey monkeys: a ‘simple tool’ to find fruit

Previous research has shown that a considerable number of primates can remember the location and fruiting state of individual trees in their home range. This enables them to relocate fruit or predict whether previously encountered fruit has ripened. Recent studies, however, suggest that the ability of primates to cognitively map fruit-bearing trees is limited. In this study, we investigated an alternative and arguably simpler, more efficient strategy, the use of synchrony, a botanical characteristic of a large number of fruit species. Synchronous fruiting would allow the prediction of the fruiting state of a large number of trees without having to first check the trees. We studied whether rainforest primates, grey-cheeked mangabeys in the Kibale National Park, Uganda, used synchrony in fruit emergence to find fruit. We analysed the movements of adult males towards Uvariopsis congensis food trees, a strongly synchronous fruiting species with different local patterns of synchrony. Monkeys approached within crown distance, entered and inspected significantly more Uvariopsis trees when the percentage of trees with ripe fruit was high compared to when it was low. Since the effect was also found for empty trees, the monkeys likely followed a synchrony-based inspection strategy. We found no indication that the monkeys generalised this strategy to all Uvariopsis trees within their home range. Instead, they attended to fruiting peaks in local areas within the home range and adjusted their inspective behaviour accordingly revealing that non-human primates use botanical knowledge in a flexible way.     

Knowing minds, controlling actions: the developmental relations between theory of mind and executive function from 2 to 4 years of age

This longitudinal study examined the concurrent and predictive relations between executive function (EF) and theory of mind (ToM) in 82 preschoolers who were assessed when they were 2, 3, and 4 years old. The results showed that the concurrent relation between EF and ToM, after controlling for age, verbal ability, and sex, was significant at 3 and 4 years of age but not at 2 years of age. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that EF at age 2 significantly predicted ToM at age 3 and that EF at age 3 significantly predicted ToM at age 4, over and above the effects of age, verbal ability, and prior performance on ToM tasks. However, ToM at ages 2 and 3 did not explain a significant amount of variance in EF at age 4. Bootstrap procedures revealed that verbal ability at age 3 fully mediated the relation between ToM at age 2 and EF at age 4.     

Paw preference is not affected by postural demand in a nonprimate mammal (Felis silvestris catus)

Previously, it has been thought that handedness is unique to humans. Recently, it has been found that hand or paw preferences are common among a variety of vertebrate species. Different models have been put forth to describe the evolution of primate handedness. In this study we aimed to explore whether these models can also be used to predict manual laterality in nonprimate mammalian groups. The cat (Felis silvestris catus) is a good nonprimate model for manual laterality, as cats frequently use paws to catch and hold prey. Cats were exposed to two standardized manual laterality tasks, differing in postural demand. Subjects (N = 28) were forced to use either a stable or unstable body posture (i.e., sitting or standing vs. vertical clinging) to extract food items from a plastic box attached at two different heights. We revealed that cats exhibited paw preferences at an individual level with about 40% left, 30% right, 30% nonlateralized subjects. Postural demand was linked to task difficulty: the unstable body posture was found to be significantly more difficult than the stable body posture. However, these differences in postural demand and task difficulty did not lead to differences in direction or strength of paw preference. Findings suggested that nonprimate mammals differ from primates in their sensitivity to task related factors, such as postural demand. Results coincide with those of some prosimians, providing support for the hypothesis that postural demand and the associated task complexity became influencing factors on manual laterality in the course of primate evolution.     

I like you but I don't know why: Objective facial resemblance to significant others influences snap judgments

Does a new person's objective facial resemblance to a significant other influence snap judgments of liking, and if so, does this effect occur even when individuals are not consciously aware of the resemblance? Participants (romantic couples) made trait judgments about 24 novel faces, each shown for 500 ms. Objective facial resemblance was manipulated using morphing techniques such that half of the novel faces resembled participants' partner and half did not. We found that women's evaluations of novel men who resembled their partner (vs. those who did not) were more positive, but men's evaluations of novel women were not appreciably affected by facial resemblance. These results held even when individuals were not consciously aware of the resemblance. Moreover, the effect of facial resemblance on judgments of liking was more pronounced for individuals who were more satisfied in their relationship, suggesting that these results were due to activating the specific partner representation (rather than familiarity). This research shows that objective facial resemblance to a significant other influences snap judgments of liking automatically, effortlessly, and without conscious awareness.