Do traumatic events influence the clinical expression of compulsive hoarding?

Traumatic experiences have been posited as one potential catalyst for the abrupt onset of obsessive-compulsive symptoms including compulsive hoarding. To determine whether traumatic life events (TLEs) might influence the expression of compulsive hoarding in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), interview responses to the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder module of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID) were examined in 180 individuals with OCD. Compared to individuals with OCD who did not meet criteria for hoarding, participants classified as hoarders (24% of the sample) were significantly more likely to have reported at least one TLE in their lifetime. Patients who met criteria for hoarding and who had also experienced TLEs had significantly greater hoarding symptom severity than those hoarders not exposed to trauma. This association was found to be robust. That is, the relationship between TLEs and hoarding symptom severity was not better accounted for by age, age of OCD onset, depressive symptoms, general OCD symptomatology, or mood and anxiety comorbidity. Closer examination revealed that the clutter factor of compulsive hoarding (and not difficulty discarding or acquisitioning) was most strongly associated with having experienced a traumatic event.     

Interactive effects of cumulative lifetime traumatic brain injuries and combat exposure on posttraumatic stress among deployed military personnel

Growing research links Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) with greater posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. Much of this research has focused on the influence of the presence or severity of a single TBI while neglecting the potential cumulative effects of multiple TBIs incurred across an individual’s lifetime on combat-related PTSD. The present study addressed this gap using a sample of 157 military service members and 4 civilian contractors who underwent structured TBI interviews at a military hospital in Iraq and completed the Combat Experiences Scale (CES) and Posttraumatic Checklist – Military (PCL-M). Results indicated that a greater number of lifetime TBIs were associated with greater PTSD symptoms when accounting for the presence and severity of a recent, deployment-related TBI. Additionally, a significant interaction of number of lifetime TBIs and combat exposure emerged, indicating that exposure to combat yielded greater PTSD symptoms among those with multiple lifetime TBIs compared to those with one or zero lifetime TBIs. These data suggest that incurring multiple TBIs may amplify the link between combat exposure and PTSD and underscore the need to screen for lifetime TBI history.     

The internal clock: Electroencephalographic evidence for oscillatory processes underlying time perception

It has been proposed that temporal perception and performance depend on a biological source of temporal information. A model for a temporal oscillator put forward by Treisman, Faulkner, Naish, and Brogan (1990) predicted that if intense sensory pulses (such as auditory clicks) were presented to subjects at suitable rates they would perturb the frequency at which the temporal oscillator runs and so cause over- or underestimation of time. The resulting pattern of interference between sensory pulse rates and time judgments would depend on the frequency of the temporal oscillator and so might allow that frequency to be estimated. Such interference patterns were found using auditory clicks and visual flicker (Treisman & Brogan, 1992; Treisman et al., 1990). The present study examines time estimation together with the simultaneously recorded electroencephalogram to examine whether evidence of such an interference pattern can be found in the EEG.

Alternative models for the organization of a temporal system consisting of an oscillator or multiple oscillators are considered and predictions derived from them relating to the EEG. An experiment was run in which time intervals were presented for estimation, auditory clicks being given during those intervals, and the EEG was recorded concurrently. Analyses of the EEG revealed interactions between auditory click rates and certain EEG components which parallel the interference patterns previously found. The overall pattern of EEG results is interpreted as favouring a model for the organization of the temporal system in which sets of click-sensitive oscillators spaced at intervals of about 12.8 Hz contribute to the EEG spectrum. These are taken to represent a series of harmonically spaced distributions of oscillators involved in time-keeping.     

Differential effects of mood on information processing: evidence from the theories of reasoned action and planned behaviour

The theories of reasoned action and planned behaviour continue to receive considerable research attention, despite criticisms of their ‘asocial’ conceptualisation and the rational decision‐making approach. Two studies were designed to assess the impact of induced mood on condom use (Study 1) and food choice (Study 2). Both studies provided support for application of the theory of reasoned action to health‐related behaviour, and for differential effects of mood on information processing. Study 1 provided support for problem‐focus theory, with attitudes (but not subjective norm) predicting intention in the negative mood condition. The opposite pattern of findings held for the positive mood condition (i.e. only subjective norm predicted intention). The results of Study 2 provided further support for the problem‐focus approach and for the inclusion of self‐identity in the theory of planned behaviour. The findings are discussed with implications for future work on mood and behavioural decision making. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The theory of planned behaviour and exercise: An investigation into the role of prior behaviour,behavioural intentions and attitude variability

This paper reports a prospective study which applied the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) to the prediction of exercise behaviour over a six-month period. The study addressed a number of issues which have been identified in the literature on the TPB; these being the role of prior behaviour in the TPB, the distinction between desires and self-predictions, and the question of attitude variability. The findings showed prior behaviour to be the strongest predictor of exercise behaviour at six months. Contrary to expectations, the self-prediction measure was not found to be a better predictor of behaviour than the desire measure. Attitude variability was found to be related to perceptions of control. However, attitude variability was not found to moderate relationships between components of the TPB. The implications of the results for the development of the TPB are discussed.     

Strategic control in AGL is not attributable to simple letter frequencies alone

In Norman, Price, and Jones (2011), we argued that the ability to apply two sets of grammar rules flexibly from trial to trial on a “mixed-block” AGL classification task indicated strategic control over knowledge that was less than fully explicit. Jiménez (2011) suggested that our results do not in themselves prove that participants learned – and strategically controlled – complex properties of the structures of the grammars, but that they may be accounted for by learning of simple letter frequencies. We first explain why our main conclusions regarding strategic control and conscious awareness are a separable issue to this criticism. We then report additional data which show that our participants’ ability to discriminate between the two grammars was not attributable to differences in simple letter frequencies.     

Let's get serious: communicating commitment in romantic relationships

Are men or women more likely to confess love first in romantic relationships? And how do men and women feel when their partners say "I love you"? An evolutionary-economics perspective contends that women and men incur different potential costs and gain different potential benefits from confessing love. Across 6 studies testing current and former romantic relationships, we found that although people think that women are the first to confess love and feel happier when they receive such confessions, it is actually men who confess love first and feel happier when receiving confessions. Consistent with predictions from our model, additional studies have shown that men's and women's reactions to love confessions differ in important ways depending on whether the couple has engaged in sexual activity. These studies have demonstrated that saying and hearing "I love you" has different meanings depending on who is doing the confessing and when the confession is being made. Beyond romantic relationships, an evolutionary-economics perspective suggests that displays of commitment in other types of relationships--and reactions to these displays--will be influenced by specific, functional biases.