Factors Affecting Reported Rates of Self-Injury*

ABSTRACT: The magnitude of variation in reported rates of self-injury suggests that factors other than actual incidence affect these rates. Factors that relate to the scope of the reporting network and to the intensity of contacts within this network are examined in detail to determine their effect on the reporting process. Differences in study design and reporting procedures are found to explain most of this variation and suggest the need for standardized techniques in studying the epidemiology of self-injury.     

Argumentation in Philosophical Controversies

Anyone interested in philosophical argumentation should be prepared to study philosophical debates and controversies because it is an intensely dialogical, and even contentious, genre of argumentation. There is hardly any other way to do them justice. This is the reason why the present special issue addresses philosophical argumentation within philosophical debates. Of the six articles in this special issue, one deals with a technical aspect, the diagramming of arguments, another contrasts two moments in philosophical argumentation, Antiquity and the twentieth century, focusing on the use of refutation, and the remaining four analyze particular philosophical controversies. The controversies analyzed differ significantly in their characteristics (time, extension, media, audience,…). Hopefully, this varied sample will illuminate some salient aspects of philosophical argumentation, its representation and variations throughout history. We are fully aware that, given the scarcity of previous studies of philosophical debates from the perspective of argumentation theory, the following specimens of analysis must have several shortcomings. But it is a well-known adage that the hardest part is the beginning. That is what we tried to achieve here, no more, but no less either.

     

Implicit evidence on the dissociation of identity and emotion recognition

Cognitive Processing - Recognition of identity and of emotional facial expressions of individuals are both based on processing of the human face. While most studies show these abilities to be...     

Forming and updating vaccination beliefs: does the continued effect of misinformation depend on what we think we know?

Cognitive Processing - People may cling to false facts even in the face of updated and correct information. The present study confronted misconceptions about the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine...     

Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation of the Left Temporal Lobe Modulates Insight

Creativity is the ability to come up with new and original solutions to problems. It is characterized along a dipole spectrum, with the opposing ends defined as convergent and divergent thinking. Previous studies have provided evidence that various cognitive functions and insight into non-verbal problems can be enhanced using non-invasive brain stimulation. The aim of this pilot study was to investigate whether convergent and divergent thinking, as well as insight, can be modulated by transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) over the anterior temporal lobe (ATL). Bilateral tDCS (1.5 mA, 20 minutes) was used to modulate activity of the right (AR tDCS) and the left (AL tDCS) ATL. Twenty-one participants performed a divergent thinking test (DTT) during tDCS, while a Remote Associates Task (RAT) was administered before and after tDCS to assess convergent thinking. A control experiment, using a Simple Reaction Time (SRT) Task, was conducted in 10 subjects before and after ATL tDCS in order to investigate whether its effects reflect attention or motor effects on the dominant hand. Results from this preliminary study showed that AL tDCS reduced RAT reaction times (RTs) by 20%. Both AL and AR tDCS did not change RAT accuracy, or the DTT total or sub-item scores. No differences were found in the SRT task after either AL or AR tDCS. These findings suggest that left but not right ATL is involved in convergent thinking. Conversely, both left and right temporal cortex tDCS-induced excitability changes failed to modulate divergent thinking. Limitations are discussed.     

On pacing trials while scanning brain hemodynamics: The case of the SNARC effect

Psychonomic Bulletin & Review - Experimental designs used to describe psychological effects on overt human behavior are seldom suited to localize their corresponding neural substrates based on...     

The subjective quality of episodic future thought and the experience of meaning in life

Two studies assessed whether mentally simulating specific future events to occur in familiar (vs. unfamiliar) settings indirectly increases meaning life via the subjective quality of the simulations. Participants in both studies (N = 344) were randomly assigned to visualize themselves doing something in familiar (e.g. home) or unfamiliar (e.g. fantasy world) settings in the future. They then rated the subjective quality of these visualizations and completed a measure of meaning in life. We replicated previous findings by showing that mental simulations involving familiar settings were of greater subjective quality than simulations involving unfamiliar settings. However, we also found that simulating future events in familiar (vs. unfamiliar) settings indirectly increased the perceived meaningfulness of life. These findings integrate research in cognitive psychology with research on the psychology of well-being and reveal how mental time travel contributes to the perception that one’s life has meaning.