The primacy of cognition in schizophrenia

Cognitive tasks and concepts are used increasingly in schizophrenia science and treatment. Recent meta-analyses show that across a spectrum of research domains only cognitive measures distinguish a majority of schizophrenia patients from healthy people. Average effect sizes derived from common clinical tests of attention, memory, language, and reasoning are twice as large as those obtained in structural magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission tomography studies. Chronic stress, genes, brain disturbances, task structure, gender, and sociocultural background may all enhance the sensitivity of cognitive performance to schizophrenia. At the same time, disease heterogeneity and the presence of endophenotypes and subtypes within the patient population may place upper limits on the strength of any specific cognitive finding. Schizophrenia is a complex biobehavioral disorder that manifests itself primarily in cognition.     

The wording of conclusions in relational reasoning

Literature on relational reasoning mainly focuses on the performance question. It is typically argued that problem difficulty relies on the number of "mental models" compatible with the problem. However, no study has ever investigated the wording of conclusions that participants formulate. In the present work, we analyze the relational terms that people use in drawing conclusions from spatial relation problems (A is to the left of B, B is to the left C, D is in front of A, E is in front C, What is the relation between D and E?). We observed a general preference for expressing conclusions with 'left' rather than conclusions with 'right'. We also found that three factors had an influence on the wording of the conclusions: the linguistic form of premises, the question type and the presentation format. On the other hand, the number of models and premise order did not affect the wording of conclusions. Our study shows that the type of conclusion produced provides a new key to identifying the mental processes involved in spatial reasoning. Implications for the two main approaches to reasoning processes (i.e. the analogical and the propositional approaches) are discussed.     

Everyday conditional reasoning: A working memory—dependent tradeoff between counterexample and likelihood use

Considerable evidence has revealed that working memory capacity is an important determinant of conditional reasoning performance. There are two accounts describing the conditional inference process, the probabilistic and the mental models accounts. According to the mental models account, reasoners retrieve and integrate counterexample information to attain a conclusion. According to the probabilistic account, reasoners base their judgments on probabilistic information. It can be assumed that reasoning according to the mental models process would require more working memory resources than would solving the inference on the basis of probabilistic information. By means of a verbal report study, we showed that participants with low working memory capacity more often use probabilistic information, whereas participants with higher working memory capacity are more likely to use counterexample information. Working memory capacity thus not only relates to reasoning performance, it also determines which process reasoners will engage in.     

Oculomotor consequences of abrupt object onsets and offsets: onsets dominate oculomotor capture

Previous research has shown that the appearance of an object (onset) and the disappearance of an object (offset) have the ability to influence the allocation of covert attention. To determine whether both onsets and offsets have the ability to influence eye movements, a series of experiments was conducted in which participants had to make goal-directed eye movements to a color singleton target in the presence of an irrelevant onset/offset. In accord with previous research, onsets had the ability to capture the eyes. The offset of an object demonstrated little or no ability to interrupt goal-directed eye movements to the target. Two experiments in which the effects of onsets and offsets on covert attention were examined suggest that offsets do not capture the eyes, because they have a lesser ability to capture covert attention than do onsets. A number of other studies that have shown strong effects of offsets on attention have used offsets that were uncorrelated with target position (i.e., nonpredictive), whereas we used onsets and offsets that never served as targets (i.e., antipredictive). The present results are consistent with a new-object theory of attentional capture in which onsets receive attentional priority over other types of changes in the visual environment.     

Activation of the cannabinoid receptor type 1 decreases glutamatergic and GABAergic synaptic transmission in the lateral amygdala of the mouse

The endogenous cannabinoid system has been shown recently to play a crucial role in the extinction of aversive memories. As the amygdala is presumably involved in this process, we investigated the effects of the cannabinoid receptor agonist WIN 55,212-2 (WIN-2) on synaptic transmission in the lateral amygdala (LA) of wild-type and cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1)-deficient mice. Extracellular field potential recordings and patch-clamp experiments were performed in an in vitro slice preparation. We found that WIN-2 reduces basal synaptic transmission and pharmacologically isolated AMPA receptor- and GABA_A receptor-mediated postsynaptic currents in wild-type, but not in CB1-deficient mice. These results indicate that, in the LA, cannabinoids modulate both excitatory and inhibitory synaptic transmission via CB1. WIN-2-induced changes of paired-pulse ratio and of spontaneous and miniature postsynaptic currents suggest a presynaptic site of action. Inhibition of G_i/o proteins and blockade of voltage-dependent and G protein-gated inwardly rectifying K⁺ channels inhibited WIN-2 action on basal synaptic transmission. In contrast, modulation of the adenylyl cyclase-protein kinase A pathway, and blockade of presynaptic N- and P/Q- or of postsynaptic L- and R/T-type voltage-gated Ca²⁺ channels did not affect WIN-2 effects. Our results indicate that the mechanisms underlying cannabinoid action in the LA partly resemble those observed in the nucleus accumbens and differ from those described for the hippocampus.     

An Appreciation of Hal Childs' Critique of Historical Jesus Research

Biblical scholars have been exceedingly slow to grasp the implications of the Heisenberg principle, namely, that the observer is always a part of the field being observed, and disturbs that field by the very act of observation. In terms of the interpretive task, this means that there can be no question of an objective view of Jesus as he really was. Objective view; is itself an oxymoron; every view is subjective, from a particular angle of vision. We always encounter the biblical text with interests. We always have a stake in our reading of it. We always have angles of vision that can be helpful or harmful in interpreting texts. Historical writing does not treat reality; it treats the interpreter's relation to it, according to Brian Stock. All history, said the poet Wallace Stevens, is modern history. And historical criticism is a form of criticism of the present, according to Walter Kasper. All that is true, but only partially. For historical criticism can still help us recover an understanding of that past that holds out to us present meaning.     

Effect of multicomponent interventions on caregiver burden and depression: the REACH multisite initiative at 6-month follow-up

Meta-analysis was used to examine pooled parameter estimates of 9 active compared with 6 control conditions of the Resources for Enhancing Alzheimer's Caregiver Health (REACH) project at 6 months on caregiver burden and depressive symptoms. Associations of caregiver characteristics and outcomes were examined. For burden, active interventions were superior to control conditions (p = .022). Also, active interventions were superior to control conditions for women versus men and for caregivers with lower education versus those with higher education. For depressive symptoms, a statistically significant association of group assignment was found for Miami's family therapy and computer technology intervention (p = .034). Also, active interventions were superior to control conditions for Hispanics, nonspouses, and caregivers with lower education. Results suggest interventions should be multicomponent and tailored.     

Electroencephalographic value of acoustic stimulation within the scope of the diagnosis of forms of cerebral seizure in childhood and adolescence

In this report we represent the phone-stimulation as an important method of provocative to activate the bioelectric potentials of brain, if epileptic seizures will be appeared in age of childhood and youth. The method ist able to demonstrate irritations of the reticulothalamic system. The information on the activity of the substantia reticularis will be demonstrated by the bioelectric reaction under phone-stimulation.     

Leary's circle matrix: A comprehensive model for the statistical measurement of Horney's clinical concepts

Three issues associated with the lack of statistical evaluation of Horney's theory were presented. They are the preference for professional and clinical impression over the use of more objective methods for defining and evaluating behaviors; the difficulty involved in validly assessing the dysfunctional nature of the expansive type; and the disregard of many objective scales for intrapsychic processes that should be viewed in terms of the total "organization of personality." Leary's model was described as a systematic and formal set of procedures that are relevant and appropriate to the measurement of behavior within the context of Horney's theory. Additionally, a current study was cited that used Leary's model with significant results pertaining to the statistical implications of Leary's procedures and the adaptation of the model to Horney's theory. It is clear that any theory which presumes to provide therapeutic treatment to clients in an ethical manner must be critiqued and evaluated to safeguard the welfare of its clients. However, it is a common practice to accept therapeutic concepts that are nestled in a defined model without testing them in a relatively objective manner. With the help of Leary's circle matrix and operational procedures, it is crucial that Horney's constructs be further submitted to empirical testing on a formal basis. The procedures have been available since 1957.