A disadvantage in bilingual sentence production modulated by syntactic frequency and similarity across languages

Bilingual speakers access individual words less fluently, quickly, and accurately than monolinguals, particularly when accessing low-frequency words. Here we examined whether the bilingual speech production disadvantage would (a) extend to full sentences above and beyond single word retrieval and whether it would be modulated by (b) structural frequency and (c) syntactic properties of the bilingual speakers’ other language. English monolinguals, Spanish–English bilinguals and Mandarin–English bilinguals were tested in a sentence production task conducted exclusively in English. Response times were modulated by bilingualism, structural frequency, and structural similarity across the bilingual speakers’ two languages. These results refine our knowledge regarding the scope of the bilingual disadvantage, demonstrate that frequency effects apply to syntactic structures, and also suggest that syntax is partially shared across bilinguals’ two languages.     

Systematic review of instruments measuring homophobia and related constructs

Since its conceptualization, the construct of homophobia has been the subject of many speculations about its specificity, reach, and possibility of empirical assessment. Several instruments have been created aiming to measure the prejudice against homosexuals. Peer‐reviewed articles of studies using measures to assess homophobia and related constructs were systematically reviewed in 4 databases (Medline, PsycINFO, ERIC, JSTOR). The articles were classified as they displayed evidence of the instrument's validity, reliability, or both. Finally, the instruments were rated according to that evidence. Out of 1076 results, 115 studies between 1993 and 2010 were identified as relevant. Those studies used 47 different instruments. This review focused in 5 instruments that concentrated the majority of the citations. Psychometric properties were acceptable.     

Notes on the theory of variable binding term operators

The general theory of variable binding term operators is an interesting recent development in logic. It opens up a rich class of semantic and model-theoretic problems. In this paper we survey the recent literature on the topic, and offer some remarks on its significances and on its connections with other branches of mathematical logic.     

Effect of pre- and postcompetition emotional state on salivary cortisol in top-ranking wrestlers

The purpose was three-fold: (1) to investigate the effect of baseline, precompetition, and postcompetition stress on salivary cortisol levels in top-ranking Brazilian wrestlers (N = 17) participating in a national competition; (2) to estimate correlations among three stress measures (perceived stress, salivary cortisol, and physiological stress reaction); and (3) to compare cortisol concentrations between losers and winners. Salivary cortisol was collected at baseline, pre-, and postcompetition. Physiological stress reaction and perceived stress scores were measured just before warm-up for the competition. Analysis showed a significant main effect for testing time. Correlations among the stress measures were not significant. Analysis of covariance between the winners (n = 10) and the losers (n = 7) was also not significant. Salivary cortisol concentrations increased after the intense exercise of competition. The wrestlers did not perceive any physiological effects.     

Polyaminergic agents modulate contextual fear extinction in rats

Polyamines, such as spermidine and spermine, have been reported to improve memory retention through the activation of N-methyl-d-aspartate receptors (NMDAr). However whether polyamine agonists and antagonists alter extinction remains unclear. In the current study, we investigated whether spermidine and polyamine antagonists that selectively block the NR2B subunit at the NMDAr alter the extinction of contextual conditioned fear in male Wistar rats. The bilateral intra-hippocampal administration of exogenous spermidine (2 nmol/site) immediately after, but not 6 h after extinction training, facilitated the extinction of fear conditioning. The injection of the NMDAr antagonists arcaine (0.2 nmol/site), ifenprodil (20 nmol/site) and traxoprodil (0.2 nmol/site), disrupted fear extinction and, at doses that had no effect per se, reversed the facilitatory effect of spermidine on fear extinction. These results suggest that exogenous and endogenous polyamines facilitate the extinction of contextual conditioned fear through activation of NR2B subunit-containing NMDAr in the hippocampus. Since extinction-based exposure therapy is widely used as treatment for a number of anxiety-related disorders, including phobias and post-traumatic stress, the currently reported facilitation of extinction by polyaminergic agents suggest these compounds as putative candidates for drug development.     

Perceptions of stressful life events as turning points are associated with self-rated health and psychological distress

Abstract

We test the hypothesis that changes in physical and psychological health are associated with construals of stressful life events. At two points in time, approximately 10 years apart, participants (n=1038) rated their physical health and psychological distress. At the second assessment, participants also reported their most stressful life event since the first assessment and indicated whether they considered the event a turning point and/or lesson learned. Lower self-ratings of health and higher ratings of psychological distress, controlling for baseline health and distress, and relevant demographic factors, were associated with perceiving the stressful life event as a turning point, particularly a negative turning point. The two health measures were primarily unrelated to lessons learned. How individuals construe the most stressful events in their lives are associated with changes in self-rated health and distress.     

Homophobia or sexism? A systematic review of prejudice against nonheterosexual orientation in Brazil

Since it was coined in the 1970s, in the United States, the term “homophobia” has been invoked to define the prejudice against nonheterosexual orientation. Besides the US, the phenomenon has been detected in many contemporary societies, including Brazil. Prejudice against nonheterosexual orientation is strongly associated with the historical and social contexts in which it is embedded, which means that the term should not be used without a clear definition of its local specificities. This applies to the recent debate around homophobia in the Brazilian context. In an attempt to identify existing studies of prejudice against nonheterosexual orientations in Brazil, a systematic review was conducted in SciELO indexes, PubMed, PsycINFO, SCOPUS, and Web of Science. The articles were collected using the keyword “homophobia” and related terms, and “Brazil”, in the languages ??of the databases. The search returned 355 articles. Of these, 247 were removed because they were duplicates. The abstracts of 109 studies published between 1973 and 2011were analyzed. Thirty‐one articles were identified as relevant. The reviewed studies indicate that prejudice against nonheterosexual orientations is an evident and widespread phenomenon that is prevalent in various populations and contexts. Nevertheless, prejudice in Brazil is not homogeneous, and particular attention is necessary to the inequality of gender relations (sexism) and prejudice against gender nonconformity, which seem to explain, if not cause, most of the prejudice against nonheterosexual orientations. Although theoretically there is a clear distinction between sexual orientation and gender expression, from the standpoint of manifestation of prejudice that distinction seems to be more tenuous.     

Affective auditory stimuli: Adaptation of the International Affective Digitized Sounds (IADS-2) for European Portuguese

In this study, we present the normative values of the adaptation of the International Affective Digitized Sounds (IADS-2; Bradley & Lang, 2007a) for European Portuguese (EP). The IADS-2 is a standardized database of 167 naturally occurring sounds that is widely used in the study of emotions. The sounds were rated by 300 college students who were native speakers of EP, in the three affective dimensions of valence, arousal, and dominance, by using the Self-Assessment Manikin (SAM). The aims of this adaptation were threefold: (1)?to provide researchers with standardized and normatively rated affective sounds to be used with an EP population; (2)?to investigate sex and cultural differences in the ratings of affective dimensions of auditory stimuli between EP and the American (Bradley & Lang, 2007a) and Spanish (Fernández-Abascal et al., Psicothema 20:104–113 2008; Redondo, Fraga, Padrón, & Piñeiro, Behavior Research Methods 40:784–790 2008) standardizations; and (3)?to promote research on auditory affective processing in Portugal. Our results indicated that the IADS-2 is a valid and useful database of digitized sounds for the study of emotions in a Portuguese context, allowing for comparisons of its results with those of other international studies that have used the same database for stimulus selection. The normative values of the EP adaptation of the IADS-2 database can be downloaded along with the online version of this article.