Testing the dorsal stream attention hypothesis: Electrophysiological correlates and the effects of ventral stream damage

The roles of dorsal and ventral processing streams in visual orienting and conscious perception were examined in two experiments. The first employed high density EEG with source localization. The second comprised a neuropsychological case study. Visual orienting was assessed with an attention procedure, where peripheral letters cued participants towards a target location. In the perception procedure participants responded to the same letters by performing an explicit conscious discrimination. In Experiment 1, the peripheral letters elicited rapid dorsal stream activation in the attention procedure, and this activation preceded top-down enhancement of target processing in occipital cortex. In the perception procedure early ventral stream activation was seen. In addition, peripheral letters elicited an “early directing attention negativity” (EDAN) over parietal recording sites in the attention procedure, but not in the perception procedure. In Experiment 2, a patient with a bilateral ventral stream lesion but preserved dorsal stream function showed clear disruption to performance in the perception procedure, whilst exhibiting a normal visual orienting effect in the attention procedure. Taken together these findings (1) highlight the distinct roles of the dorsal and ventral streams in attention and perception, and (2) suggest how these streams might interact, via reentrant effects of attention on perceptual processing.     

Domestic violence: solution‐focused practice with men and women who are violent

This article reviews the progress of sixty‐eight adults (fifty‐two men and sixteen women) on a solution‐focused programme aimed at reducing domestic violence. The practice principles are described, using examples of participants' experiences. The outcomes over a three‐and‐a‐half‐year period are presented and difficulties in assessing effectiveness of outcomes are discussed.     

Impact of school sense of community within a faith-based university: administrative and academic staff perceptions on institutional mission and values

Academic staff (n = 305) and administrative staff (n = 595) at a large urban, Catholic, and religious order teaching university completed on-line school sense of community, social desirability, and mission-identity plus mission-driven activity measures. Partial correlates (controlling for social desirability) indicated that for both faculty and staff a sense of community with co-workers and with administrators were significantly related to mission-identity characteristics of the university. Moreover, regression analyses found that for faculty and staff significant predictors of school sense of community variables were perceptions that the university was innovative and inclusive of pragmatic and risk-taking ideas. For staff but not for faculty, a feeling of Catholic pluralism on campus was a significant predictor of a sense of community with co-workers. These outcomes suggest that employees at faith-based universities may strengthen their school sense of community by institutional practices and programs that foster creating a setting for innovative, inclusive, pragmatic, and risk-taking policies, but not necessarily religious practices on campus.     

Anxiety responses in a sample of South African Indians

As much cross-cultural anxiety work has focused on ensuring only the semantic equivalence of questionnaires in different languages, this study examines the response characteristics of South African Indians to an anxiety instrument tentatively constructed for this population. Results show that the scale has a fairly high degree of internal consistency, and that certain items were regularly reported to be frequently experienced. Factor analysis of the 26 items reveals a cognitive distress factor, and a possible distinction within the physiological/physical dimension between somatic distress and elevated activity.     

Lateral differences in habituation of ipsilateral head-turning to repeated tactile stimulation in the human newborn

Lateral differences in habituation of ipsilateral head-turning to repeated tactile perioral stimulation following midline head restriction was studied in 44 full-term neonates. Left-sided stimulation had a significantly greater and faster decremental effect than right-sided stimulation. Even in the absence of tactile stimulation (Control Group), head-turning to the left decreased systematically whereas head-turning to the right did not. The transient efficacy of prior midline head restriction for the elimination of lateral differences in both spontaneous head movements and responsiveness to tactile input suggests that behavioral asymmetry is already well-established in the newborn.     

Kinematic analysis of limb movements in neuropsychological research: subtle deficits and recovery of function

In this brief review, we argue that a detailed analysis of the spatial and temporal characteristics of visually guided limb movements can provide important insights into the nature of neuropsychological deficits and the functional organization of the brain. In particular, we will show how kinematic analysis of a simple aiming movement can reveal differences that might not be apparent clinically in the behaviour of patients with unilateral brain lesions. We will argue that the subtle but distinctive deficits that follow damage to the left or right hemisphere can be related to the clinical syndromes of manual apraxia and hemispatial neglect, respectively. The fact that these deficits are apparent only with kinematic analysis demonstrates the potential of these techniques for evaluating recovery of function.     

Central Fixations are Inadequately Controlled by Instructions Alone: Implications for Studying Cerebral Asymmetry

A fundamental concern when using visual presentations to study cerebral asymmetry is to ensure that stimuli are presented with the same degree of retinal eccentricity from a central fixation point in either visual field. However, a widely used procedure intended to control fixation location merely instructs participants to fixate appropriately without any other means of ensuring that central fixations actually occur. We assessed the validity of assuming that instructions alone ensure central fixation by using the traditional R VF advantage for words and either (a) only instructions to fixate centrally, or (b) an eye-tracking device that ensured central fixation on every trial. Experiments 1 and 2 found that when only instructions were given, the vast majority of fixations were not central, and more occurred to the right of centre than to the left. Moreover, the prevalence of non-central fixations was otherwise disguised by the finding that both fixation procedures produced similar R VF advantages in overt performance. The impact of typical non-central fixations on performance was revealed by systematically manipulating fixation location in Experiment 3, where deviations in fixation of only 0.25 from centre had a reliable impact on visual field effects. Implications of these findings for studies of cerebral asymmetry are discussed.     

Mental disorders and communication of intent to die in indigenous suicide cases, Queensland, Australia

In comparing Indigenous to non-Indigenous suicide in Australia, this study focussed on the frequency of the association between some psychiatric conditions, such as depression and alcohol abuse, and some aspect of suicidality, in particular communication of suicide intent. Logistic regression was implemented to analyze cases of Indigenous (n = 471) versus non-Indigenous suicides (n = 6,655), using the Queensland Suicide Register as a data source. Compared to non-Indigenous suicides, Indigenous cases had lower odds of being diagnosed with unipolar depression, seeking treatment for psychiatric conditions or leaving a suicide note. Indigenous suicides had greater odds of verbally communicating suicide intent and having a history of alcohol and substance use. The magnitude of these differences is remarkable, underscoring the need for culturally sensitive suicide prevention efforts.     

Frontal electroencephalogram alpha asymmetry during sleep: stability and its relation to affective style

Electroencephalogram (EEG) alpha (8-12 Hz) asymmetries were collected from the mid-frontal and central regions during presleep wakefulness and Stage 1, Stage 2, and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep in 11 healthy right-handed participants who were free of psychiatric, neurological, and sleep problems. The authors found significant correlations between presleep wakefulness and different stages of sleep in the frontal, but not central, EEG alpha asymmetry measure. The strongest correlation was between presleep waking and REM sleep, replicating and extending relation earlier work to a normal population. The high degree of association between presleep waking and REM sleep may be a result of high cortical activation common to these states and may reflect a predisposition to different styles of emotional reactivity.