Executive Functioning and Delay Discounting of Four Different Outcomes in University Students

The study investigated a potential relationship between level of executive functioning and rates of delay discounting (i.e., the subjective decrease in the value of an outcome if its delivery is delayed). University students completed an executive-functioning questionnaire and then a delay-discounting task involving four different outcomes (money, cigarettes, dating partner, body image). Results showed that the overall measure of executive functioning was a significant predictor of rates of discounting of three of the four outcomes, and approached significance for the fourth outcome. Further, different subscales of executive functioning were significantly correlated with discounting of different outcomes. These results suggest that executive functioning plays a role in discounting of delayed outcomes and that procedures designed to affect either executive function or delay discounting might result in concomitant changes in the other measure.     

Does Religion Increase the Prevalence and Incidence of Obesity in Adulthood?

Previous research reveals that religion in America is related to variations in body weight. This article examines the relationships between religion and both body mass index (BMI) and obesity, which have increased in prevalence in the United States over the past two decades. Using longitudinal data from a national sample of adults, this study prospectively examines whether dimensions of religious life are associated with weight gain and the development of obesity during eight years of follow-up. We examine four dimensions of religiosity (attendance, salience, media practice, and consolation) and religious affiliation. Ordinary least squares regression analyses reveal that high levels of religious media practice are associated with higher BMI in women. Logistic regression analyses reveal that high levels of religious media practice and affiliation with a Baptist denomination increased the risk of obesity for women, but that a high level of religious consolation reduced the risk of obesity incidence for men. Attendance at religious services was associated with a lower risk of the incidence of obesity for women, suggesting the importance of studying links between dimensions of religious life and body weight.     

False Memories in Individuals at Risk for Developing an Eating Disorder

In the present study, the authors used the Roediger and McDermott paradigm (H. L. Roediger & K. B. McDermott, 1995) to examine the creation of false memories in individuals at risk for developing an eating disorder. Thirty-three controls and 34 individuals at risk for eating disorders studied 6 word lists taken from the paradigm. Three lists were food related (bread, fruit, sweet), and 3 were not food related (king, doctor, black). Both groups produced false memories (i.e., recalled or recollected words that were not presented in the lists), and controls actually produced more false memories than the at-risk individuals produced in the recall of the food-related items. Groups did not differ in their recall of items not related to food.     

Memory Scanning Performance in Healthy Young Adults,Healthy Older Adults,and Individuals with Dementia of the Alzheimer Type

A memory scanning (Sternberg, 1966, 1975) task was administered to healthy young adults, older adults, and two groups of individuals with dementia of the Alzheimer's type (DAT) to determine age- and disease-related changes in the retrieval of information from short-term memory. Healthy older adults, in comparison to healthy young adults, displayed increases in both slopes and intercepts in memory scanning. Individuals at various stages of DAT (very mild, mild, moderate) displayed increases in both slopes and intercepts compared to nondemented age-matched control individuals. There was also some evidence that DAT individuals are more likely to engage in a self-terminating search instead of an exhaustive search of short-term memory.     

Inhibiting Irrelevant Information in Malingered Amnesia

The Psychological Record - Two groups of undergraduates received simulated amnesia instructions that either informed them how amnesics perform on memory tasks (informed; n = 11) or did not inform...     

Gender differences in false memory production

The present study investigated differences in false memory production between men and women, using the Deese/Roedgier McDermott (DRM) paradigm. Five word lists were used (MAN, GIRL, BREAD, BLACK, HIGH) and it was predicted that males would produce more false memories for the MAN word list while females will produce more false memories for the GIRL word list. Results did not confirm our predictions. Gender was neither a significant main effect, nor did it interact with any factors. Test and List x Test were the only significant main or interaction effects, respectively. Results are discussed as they relate to gender differences in cognitive processing.     

Preliminary Data on Risk Factors and Disordered Eating in Male College Students

The present study investigated four (anger, depression, anxiety, impulsivity) potential risk factors for the development of eating disorders in 79 male college students. All participants completed the Setting Conditions for Anorexia Nervosa Scale (SCANS), to determine if they were at-risk for the development of an eating disorder. The hypothesis, that males who are at-risk for the development of an eating disorder would show a higher occurrence of the potential risk factors, was partially supported. Those who scored high on the Dissatisfaction subscale of the SCANS had high positive correlations with all four risk factors. The SCANS Perfectionism subscale showed no such relationships with any of the risk factoes.