Brain mechanisms of altered consciousness in generalised seizures

In spite of the inherent difficulties in achieving a biologically meaningful definition of consciousness, recent neurophysiological studies are starting to provide some insight in fundamental mechanisms associated with impaired consciousness in neurological disorders. Generalised seizures are associated with disruption of the default state network, a functional network of discrete brain areas, which include the fronto-parietal cortices. Subcortical contribution through activation of thalamocortical structures, as well as striate nuclei are also crucial to produce impaired consciousness in generalised seizures.     

A Simon effect for depth in three-dimensional displays

We investigated whether the Simon effect occurs for the depth dimension in a 3-dimensional display. In Experiment 1, participants executed discriminative responses to 2 stimuli, a cross and a sphere, both 3-dimensional, which were perceived to be located near or far with respect to the participant's body. The response keys were located near and far along the participant's midline. Apparent stimulus spatial location (near or far) was irrelevant to the task. Results showed a depth Simon effect, attributable to the apparent stimulus spatial location. Experiment 2 replicated Experiment 1 with a different procedure. The 2 stimuli, a triangle and a rectangle, were 2-dimensional and were perceived as being located near or far from the participant's midline; the response keys were located near and far along the participant's midline. Results showed again the depth Simon effect. Experiment 3 was a control condition in which the 2 stimuli, drawings of a lamp and of a chair, had the same size, regardless of whether they appeared to be near or far. The depth Simon effect was replicated. A distribution analysis on data of Experiment 3 showed that the Simon effect increased as reaction times became longer. In Experiment 4, the position of the 2 stimuli, a circle and a cross, varied on the horizontal (right or left) dimension, whereas the position of the 2 responses varied along the depth (near or far) dimension. No Simon effect was found.     

Discovering Multiple Identities among Italian Non-Heterosexual Men in a Cruising Context

For many men in modern Western societies it is not uncommon to have anonymous same-sex acts in cruising places with a varying frequency depending on their biographical history. Specific identities of men cruising for same-sex acts (cruisers) in a park located in a North Italy city were investigated. In this study 57 men were interviewed by three different methods (individually, couple interviews, and one focus group of friends). A pragmatic approach was followed throughout the analysis of the data, drawing from a number of analytic strategies, including constant-comparative, typographic, and narrative methods. Queer theory and queer historiography were also blended into the examinations of the men??s lives. Cruisers?? identities consisted of three elements: self-perception, or what an individual felt or perceived about himself and his contexts; experiences, or what and/or how he behaved or acted; and interpretations drawn from the cruiser??s experiences, or the meanings he ascribed to himself and his life concerning his experiences, in juxtaposition to what he perceived as the normative values of the contexts of which he was a part. Six identity types among cruisers were delineated, providing evidence of different ways non-heterosexual men identify in cruising places. Understanding the nuances of cruisers?? identities will prevent other researchers from extrapolating from only the visible elements or actions of this population.     

Avoiding minorities: Social invisibility

Three experiments examined how self‐consciousness has an impact on the visual exploration of a social field. The main hypothesis was that merely a photograph of people can trigger a dynamic process of social visual interaction such that minority images are avoided when people are in a state of self‐reflective consciousness. In all three experiments, pairs of pictures—one with characters of social minorities and one with characters of social majorities—were shown to the participants. By means of eye‐tracking technology, the results of Experiment 1 (n = 20) confirmed the hypothesis that in the reflective consciousness condition, people look more at the majority than minority characters. The results of Experiment 2 (n = 89) confirmed the hypothesis that reflective consciousness also induces avoiding reciprocal visual interaction with minorities. Finally, by manipulating the visual interaction (direct vs. non‐direct) with the photos of minority and majority characters, the results of Experiment 3 (n = 56) confirmed the hypothesis that direct visual interaction with minority characters is perceived as being longer and more aversive. The overall conclusion is that self‐reflective consciousness leads people to avoid visual interaction with social minorities, consigning them to social invisibility. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Gaze orientation interferes with mental numerical representation

Number comparison tasks are characterized by distance and size effects. The distance effect reveals that the higher the distance is between two numbers, the easier their magnitude comparison is. Accordingly, people are thought to represent numbers on a spatial dimension, the mental number line, on which any given number corresponds to a location on the line. The size effect, instead, states that at any given distance, comparing two small numbers is easier than comparing two large numbers, thus suggesting that larger numbers are more vaguely represented than smaller ones. In the present work we first tested whether the participants were adopting a spatial strategy to solve a very simple numbers comparison task, by assessing the presence of the distance and the magnitude effect. Secondarily, we focused on the influence of gaze position on their performance. The present results provide evidence that gaze direction interferes with number comparisons, worsening the vague representation of larger numbers and further supporting the hypothesis of the overlapping between physical and mental spaces.     

A technique for the measurement of aggressive behavior in mice

This paper describes an apparatus permitting the study of aggressive behavior in mice. Aggressive behavior may be spontaneous or induced by means of an electric shock delivered through the tail.     

Bystanders’ reactions to intimate partner violence: an experimental approach

ABSTRACT

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is a widespread phenomenon. Despite the prevalence of IPV in Western societies, most cases remain unnoticed or at least unreported to authorities. Social psychologists have been investigating bystanders’ reactions to IPV, to understand which factors may influence the willingness to intervene in support of a female victim of violence. We review a research programme that directly investigated personal and situational factors that make potential bystanders believe a woman victim of IPV deserves and needs (their) help and support, and what, on the contrary, makes them deny any such willingness to help. We present evidence about the situational antecedents of bystander’s reaction, the underlying mechanisms of this intervention, and an extension of such evidence to non-prototypical cases, i.e., to an IPV episode occurring within a same-sex couple. We conclude by discussing future directions, and by highlighting the theoretical and practical contributions of this programme of research to the understanding of IPV for both researchers and practitioners.