Mood as a resource in dealing with health recommendations: How mood affects information processing and acceptance of quit-smoking messages

Objective: An experimental study tested the effects of positive and negative mood on the processing and acceptance of health recommendations about smoking in an online experiment. It was hypothesised that positive mood would provide smokers with the resources to systematically process self-relevant health recommendations.

Design: One hundred and twenty-seven participants (smokers and non-smokers) read a message in which a quit smoking programme was recommended. Participants were randomly assigned to one of four conditions: positive versus negative mood, and strong versus weak arguments for the recommended action.

Main outcome measures: Systematic message processing was inferred when participants were able to distinguish between high- and low-quality arguments, and by congruence between attitudes and behavioural intentions. Persuasion was measured by participant's attitudes towards smoking and the recommended action, and by their intentions to follow the action recommendation.

Results: As predicted, smokers systematically processed the health message only under positive mood conditions; non-smokers systematically processed the health message only under negative mood conditions. Moreover, smokers’ attitudes towards the health message predicted intentions to quit smoking only under positive mood conditions.

Conclusion: Findings suggest that positive mood may decrease defensive processing of self-relevant health information.     

Emotional expression affects the accuracy of gaze perception

Emotional facial expressions are powerful social cues. Here we investigated how emotional expression affects the interpretation of eye gaze direction. Fifty-two observers judged where faces were looking by moving a slider on a measuring bar to the respective position. The faces displayed either an angry, happy, fearful or a neutral expression and were looking either straight at the observer, or were rotated 2°, 4°, 6° or 8° to the left and right. We found that happy faces were interpreted as directed closer to the observer, while fearful and angry faces were interpreted as directed further away. Judgments were most accurate for neutral faces, followed by happy, angry and fearful faces. These findings are discussed on the background of the “self-referential positivity bias”, suggesting that happy faces are preferably interpreted as directed towards the self while negative emotions are interpreted as directed further away.     

Loudness counts: Interactions between loudness,number magnitude,and space

ATOM (a theory of magnitude) suggests that magnitude information of different formats (numbers, space, and time) is processed within a generalized magnitude network. In this study we investigated whether loudness, as a possible indicator of intensity and magnitude, interacts with the processing of numbers. Small and large numbers, spoken in a quiet and a loud voice, were simultaneously presented to the left and right ear (Experiments 1a and 1b). Participants judged whether the number presented to the left or right ear was louder or larger. Responses were faster when the smaller number was spoken in a quiet voice, and the larger number in a loud voice. Thus, task-irrelevant numerical information influenced the processing of loudness and vice versa. This bi-directional link was also confirmed by classical SNARC paradigms (spatial–numerical association of response codes; Experiments 2a–2c) when participants again judged the magnitude or loudness of separately presented stimuli. In contrast, no loudness–number association was found in a parity judgment task. Regular SNARC effects were found in the magnitude and parity judgment task, but not in the loudness judgment task. Instead, in the latter task, response side was associated with loudness. Possible explanations for these results are discussed.     

Face scanning distinguishes social from communication impairments in autism

How closely related are the social and communicative impairments in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)? Recent findings in typically developing children suggest that both types of impairment are highly heritable but have only moderate behavioural and genetic overlap. So far, their respective roles in social perception are poorly understood. Here we show that when looking at other people’s faces, children with ASD who are better at socio‐emotional behaviours than non‐verbal communication look more at the eyes, while those with the opposite profile look more at the mouth (Study 1). For the mouth area, a similar pattern was observed for inverted faces, suggesting that information from this area is perceived on a featural basis. In Study 2, we found that when shown a person performing manual actions, ‘eye‐lookers’ from Study 1 tended to look most at the face of the actor, while ‘mouth‐lookers’ from Study 1 tended to look at the action itself (hand/objects). This result was found in both ASD and typical development. In Study 3, the main finding in Study 1 was replicated in a new sample. Taken together, we interpret these results as supporting the view that the neural systems underlying socio‐emotional versus non‐verbal communication skills are separable, a finding that has important theoretical and clinical implications. The results also suggest that a similar differentiation of looking behaviour may operate in normal development.     

Von den Schwierigkeiten, Analytiker zu werden

The results of a study concerning the social situation of students in psychoanalytic training in DPG institutes are presented. The study based on a questionnaire worked out at the meetings of the spokesmen of DPG candidates as a reaction to the changing external conditions. The Psychotherapist Act, the introduction of a new medical specialization and the planning of demand have put a considerable strain on the training conditions and have led to reduced numbers of applicants also because more and more competing, low cost training courses for psychotherapy have come onto the market. Data are presented concerning age, gender, marital status of students, beginning and termination of training, original profession of students, means of funding, frequency and costs of training analysis and supervision, as well as monthly income and expenses. The findings show for example that students nowadays are considerably older than they used to be (see Pohl 1974 and Pollmann 1985), the number of men in training decreased as well as the number of physicians while the number of women and psychologists increased. The frequency and the expenses for training analysis strongly increased while the income decreased. Many students therefore can no longer fund their training by their current income. In addition the assumption is confirmed that psychoanalytic training takes considerably longer than required by the law. As a consequence it seems necessary to reduce costs and duration of training in order to keep psychoanalytic training competitive and practicable for applicants. Therefore it is proposed by the authors to give credit for theory acquired elsewhere, to start treating patients at earlier stages of training, to allow group supervision on a larger scale and to bring the costs for training analysis and supervision in line with the rates paid by the health insurance companies in order to keep costs manageable. Other means of support, such as scholarships or reasonable loans are discussed. It is proposed to promote and further use the innovative and creative potential of candidates at an early stage to prompt research and development of psychoanalysis. It is imperative to promote psychoanalysis in the public so that it can defend its place in society and make its contribution to public health.     

Passive Students in Junior High School: The Associations with Shyness, Perceived Competence and Social Support

Relationships between passivity in school and shyness, perceived competencies and social support were assessed in a sample of 501 pupils (241 girls and 240 boys) in grades 8, 9 and 10 from two secondary schools in a city in the southern part of Norway. The analyses revealed a positive significant association between passivity in school and shyness. Findings also showed significant negative associations between passivity in school and scores of perceived social competence. Support from school peers, teachers and parents were also negatively associated with passivity. In addition the interaction between gender and perceived social competence yielded a significant association with school passivity.